Surrender
by Xibalba
Summary: **COMPLETE** How far would you go for the one you love so dearly? To the other side of a conflict, around the world, to a place that exists outside of life? (TONS of angsty shounen-ai and shoujo-ai, mainly VahnxGi.)
1. Something That Isn't There

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Legaia or it's characters, duh duh duh...  
  
Author's Note: YAY, one of the first Legend of Legaia slash ficcies! *^^* With a rather odd pairing, even. o_O But hey, anything for some good LoL slash. Focuses mainly on VahnxGi, and there'll probably be some more slash pairings later. : Let me know if this is good, please! I'm continuing this fic for myself even if it doesn't garner good reviews...   
  
  
I finally got to see the Ra-Seru heroes who defeated Zeto -- and they turned out to be you and your friends. And from that minute that I laid eyes on you, I realized that Zora's little joke was finally true.  
  
But maybe I was trying to find something in you that isn't there.  
  
For the longest time, I had spent all of my nights since then thinking of you and wishing that you would get here already. The only reason you would come here to the Floating Castle is for the empty Mist Generator. Yeah, empty ... there isn't any Ra-Seru Egg for you to shatter, and if you destroy the generator the whole castle will fall with it. I bet you didn't know that, huh?  
  
Do you really want to kill me, Vahn? Let me tell you now, I'd spare you on the first opportunity I got. And if I let these raging emotions get the best of me, I'd unleash my -other- plan on you. But then of course, you'd hack my head off with your Ra-Seru blade, and most likely wouldn't care if my corpse was crushed into nothing more than a crumpled sack of organs.  
  
But you don't understand, seriously ... I came to see that you were a force to be reckoned with, and all of a sudden felt that the Mist-filled chamber I dwell in feels so empty. And that little joke -- Zora once said that I needed someone to share my pathetic life with ( she didn't call it pathetic, but I do ): a woman, possessed by a Seru to accept the Mist. A woman. Hah. Some joke it was, and I took it too seriously and to the next level by remembering I could never hurt you.  
  
The shallow challenges I yelled at you, my phrase of saying I can deliver fatal blows to an opponent's body ... you're not my opponent, and sure as all Hell I won't even try and touch you. Of course, unless it's a -different- sort of touch.  
  
This disturbing sort of thought is exactly what I must get off my mind somehow and somewhere. And if I told you of the feelings bottled up inside, I know you'd stay as silent as you always are.  
  
So I won't let it go -- I'll wait until we meet again, Vahn.  
  
* * * *  
The Floating Castle remained undestroyed for quite some time, spreading the Mist throughout Karisto Kingdom. While the Mist brought chaos under Zora's firm command and the help of the Delilas family, there was a surprising calm and air of meager compassion within the castle itself. Tangled within a web of his own thoughts that would suffocate him at one point, Gi Delilas was found alone in the dark, misty chamber where he rested. Laying in an odd cocoon in the shadows, perhaps his solid ruby eyes were the only things penetrating the darkness, sheathed now with suspicious moisture. He had wasted an entire evening of further corruption just to sit here in solitude with his mind focusing on ... him.  
  
Vahn, the Ra-Seru bearing one who had started the rebellion against the Mist.  
  
Vahn, with his glimmering Ra-Seru that had the gift of reviving Genesis Trees and pushing away the Mist -- he had cleared Drake Kingdom and the Sebecus Islands of it already, and he and his little friends were already working on Karisto. Somewhere, somehow ... Vahn was looking at the same beautiful night sky.  
  
Vahn, with his enchanting eyes of deepest chocolate, set into a stern bisque facade that was almost never penetrated by a smile. And much like Gi, he had the unruly tufts of blue hair strewn about ( though Gi's was a charming olive-green ), not to mention a solid figure wrapped in whatever clothing and armor he happened to be wearing at the time.  
  
*We could easily change all of that...*  
  
And ever since he started looking at Vahn as more than the Ra-Seru wearer who was going to put an end to the kingdom of the Mist before it even began, there had been this taunting little voice inside of his mind that called out insane and perverse things and never stopped.  
  
Suddenly a dim light spread onto his face, a curvaceous shadow taking its place within. It was his sister Lu, who looked deeply concerned. "Gi, what are you doing in here?" she asked. "You've been in here ever since we got back."  
  
The cocoon unfurled to let him move, and he glanced at his sister with abnormally lonely eyes. "And is that interfering with your life?" he countered. She sighed at this and balled her gloved hands on her hips. She turned on a heel to face the broad hallway outside. "No, it's not ... but Zora wants to speak to you when you're done brooding." Before he could mock her more, she was gone and the darkness had been sealed in once more.  
  
Figuring Zora's wrath was not a pretty sight if he kept her waiting, he slid to his feet and dragged himself to the door. Placing a gloved hand upon it made it swing out of his way, and he jammed it right back into the pocket of his pants. He made his way to her throne room, where she was waiting patiently. "You wanted to see me, Lady Zora?" he called from the shadows, emerging from them unexpectedly.  
  
She nodded, a slender arm draping itself over an armrest as he approached her and kneeled. She could sense the brew of emotions in his voice, tangled with the agony that was always coupled with the task of keeping them inside. "Yes. It's come to my attention that you have been spending most of your spare time alone, and in an inexcusable stupor when doing work. Is there something wrong, Gi?" She leaned forward and he caught her curious gaze.  
  
There was nothing wrong, but there wasn't anything right either. She was Lady Zora, the master of his life and fate and confidant. She had nobody to relay his secrets to nor the hidden desire to. When he found the words and his voice, he told her in a very quiet voice. "Lady Zora, it's that blasted Vahn ... not his friends, but just him. I certainly know that not accepting a challenge nor providing one to a threat such as him is a dishonor, but ... it's just that I..." He trailed off there, and she stayed silent and still, waiting to see if he could continue. He honestly couldn't -- and thankfully wouldn't have to.  
  
The doors to the throne room flew open, and one of her Sim-Seru servants ran in. "Your Highness, Your Highness!" he yelped, nearly crashing upon the floor next to Gi in a lopsided kneel. "T-The Ra-Seru wearers ... they've just revived the Genesis Tree of Sol. What should we do, Your Highness?" He panted, out of breath, not realizing that Zora's eyes had narrowed upon interruption of her conversation.  
  
A dirty smirk suddenly spread across her face, and she waved her hand. "Send the Juggernaut to destroy Uru Mais, and Songi to follow them," she ordered. The Sim-Seru warrior rose to his feet with a terrible tremble. "Yes ma'am," he said, and flew just as quick as he came out of the throne room.  
  
Gi was still kneeling there as if nothing ever happened, but now he had a plan in mind. Their pet Seru, Koru, was slumbering in Nivora Ravine and just waiting to set off his own thermal energy to destroy all of Karisto Kingdom. Surely Vahn and his friends would come there at one point to try and stop it. "So sorry about that, Gi," she said with an air of annoyance. "What were you going to say?"  
  
He finally lifted his head up, every muscle in his body relaxing but not falling from its faithful kneeling position. "I know that not to fight Vahn immediately would be a dishonor, but allow me and my siblings to go to Nivora Ravine and give them a run for their money there," he explained. From the way her expression changed to a plotting smile, he knew he had struck a place of interest. "So let it be done," she said rather formally, dismissing him. He rose and turned to hibernate back into the shadows before her voice rang out again and stopped him. "Oh, and Gi?" she called, almost immediately drawing him back to his place, but standing.  
  
She paused for a minute, a hand slicking back her crown of violet hair. She looked as if she was containing laughter. "To keep you out of this harmful solitude, why don't you consider searching for someone to share your life with? It's not as if you aren't a human. Remember the Seru brides in Ratayu -- they're Seru and they were engaged. Just a thought." And for the first time in too long, she laughed. He laughed along with her, but it was a mirthless laugh.  
  
Perhaps Gi had taken her joke a bit too seriously, as he had picked himself up and out of his depression and began the hunt.  
  
  
I know it sounds like I'm repeating things in here ... but there's a point to all of that. Read and review ple~ase! :D 


	2. The Love of a Hero

Author's Note: Kee, of course I give you chapter telling what Vahn thinks of Gi. This ficcie may be short all in all, because I deleted my crappy file up to Nivora Ravine and I'm stuck on the silver-haired Songi. x__x DIE, SONGI~  
  
  
  
Would you accept the love of a hero?  
  
Maybe since the first time I saw you when you challenged us at the Shadow Gate, I was determined to see you again. Noa told me I was acting like a Seru in the Mist with hormones gone all wrong, but so is she. Gala hasn't said a word about it because he isn't experiencing this problem. Oh no, he's gone through that already.  
  
And in the middle of all this, we are two trios -- we fight against the Mist with our Ra-Seru, and you fight for the Mist with powerful Seru. I wonder how I ever came to love you in these harsh conditions.  
  
I wonder how I came to love you at all, Gi.  
  
Up until you crashed the party, never would I have been curious as to how the body of another male felt in my arms, or how you would take it. We're mortal enemies ... is that what we are? Even if we were friends, you wouldn't take it so nicely if I let it all spill to you. The strangest thing is that you haven't cleaved off my head by now, and of course I haven't touched you at all. That's a good thing ... and a bad thing. Stop giving me these clues that maybe you don't hate me after all. That maybe there's something between us and not such thick, palpable hate. I know that there's a feeling inside of me waiting to be released that'll kill me if it stays inside.  
  
It's a pity you can't be here in this lonely room with me to keep my insides from crashing on top of each other ... right here beside me in this cold and empty bed.  
  
Meta told me I'm not wrong ... that I shouldn't hold it in.  
  
So I won't -- I'll wait until we meet again.  
  
* * * *   
"Oh no, Gaza~!"  
  
Noa stood flailing her bruised and bloody arms at the nearly-dead elderly man who had once been attached to the Sim-Seru. Gala was barely conscious and kneeled on the ground, while Vahn was standing with a slight sway and his vision sliding in and out of working order. He limped over to Gala and held his right arm out, where the teal gem embedded within of Meta gleamed proudly and out flew the Vera creature he had assimilated. In a burst of light wind and energy, the Vera healed Gala and brought him to his feet. "Thank you, Vahn," he said with a nod. They turned their attention to the Genesis Tree, where Noa had already dragged the downed Gaza. She was bent on saving him, putting his priorities first. "We have to save him by reviving the Genesis Tree!" she cried, flailing.  
  
Vahn walked first to the tree and, his vision blurring and his mind reeling in sharp circles, he placed his right arm on it with all of his body weight. Noa approached it from another side and placed her left hand on it, and finally Gala put his right hand on the trunk. The areas beneath their hands glowed according to the colors of the Ra-Seru calling out to them, and the colors rushed from the tree to the air in three balls of light that zoomed around the basement before going back into the tree. Beams of light shot in all directions, and a circle formed at the base. A light also covered Gaza as the Genesis Tree began to expand and become revived from the hopeless-looking thing it had once been. A column burst through the opening all the way up the tower and engulfed the weary heroes.  
  
When the light died down, Gaza was gone and the Mist had been cleared from the tower and the small area surrounding it. Their arms felt heavier and stronger, now that their Ra-Seru had been boosted another level.  
  
But of course, that surge of power and feeling of absolute control had soon died down in the night, where the whole entire Sol Tower was jumping with life. Gala was most likely at the top with the group of Biron Monks, contributing to the party that they were holding. Noa was definetely in the dance club tearing it up with her defended Dancing Queen title. With nowhere to go, and not planning to spend his evening inside of their room in the inn, Vahn sat up slowly and shuffled out of the room.  
  
Why did he have to be so troubled like this? He was normally the strong and silent type, but even Gala saw that he had been pulling away from a social life and brooding in whatever room they were staying in. It was all -his- fault, making his stupid appearance and trying to stop their mission ... why did Gi have to stand in the way? Why couldn't he just be on -their- side?  
  
*Damn you, Gi ... damn your beautiful self to hell...*  
  
Meta, who was very high in spirits, was laughing at him.   
  
He walked a few flights down to the unmistakable doorway where a few scantily-clad young women were hanging by the railing, and lights of every color were blaring from the inside of the club and onto the floor outside. The women giggled and cooed as he descended by the steps, batting their eyelashes at him. For the disturbing thoughts he had just pulled out of, he didn't feel up to even cracking a friendly smile at them. He could only feel horrible as, out of the corner of his eye, he watched their lit expressions flicker and fade into sadness.  
  
He slid into the club and walked down the short corridor, where the doors were wide open and all sorts of strobe lights were twirling around the club and illuminating his downcast face. Up on the flashing stage, Noa was dancing unstoppably alongside two other women. She was twirling and and jumping among pillars of cool fog that seeped down from the ceiling onto the packed dance floor, her every move caught in a different color. And there on the other side stood Vahn, who shoved his hands in his pockets and tried to make his way to a corner. It was no use -- he was being bumped left and right by swaying bodies coated in a glimmering sheen of sweat.  
  
"Hey, Vahn!" one of the dancers called out, failing to stop moving. "Come dance with us!" She also failed to see that he was collaping in his own little corner, mentally and physically exhausted. "No thanks, I think I'll sit this one out," he replied. It was rather hard to have your voice fully heard over about six speakers blasting pumped techno music with enough volume and bass to blow your brains out one ear.  
  
*Tut, tut, Vahn -- just sitting in dreamland won't help you pull out of this odd depression, now will it? Get up and dance!*  
  
For a powerful Ra-Seru, Meta was becoming very annoying tonight. Though he was right, but didn't understand the lazy pain that was weighing his body down, he pushed himself to his feet minutes later and navigated smartly to the middle of the crowd to where some of his biggest fans were: young men and women of wildly-coloured hair who couldn't thank him enough for saving Sol from the Mist. Hearing a cheerful chorus of "Hey Vahn!" attacking from all sides, and a few hips grinded to his that made him begin to move.  
  
Now, if only he had put a little effort into moving his body and meshing bodies with whoever was nearest him, Vahn could have been a wonderful dancer. If Meta could assume human form, he would have hip-thrusted Vahn right into a wall and egged him on into dancing. "Gi wouldn't want you to be miserable like this" would be his answer, and again he was right. Blinking his glazed chocolate eyes out of their trance, he tried to smile and dance like a normal human being.  
  
The Mist here was gone, everybody was partying like there was no tomorrow, happiness ran rampant, and they were going to take a small break before progressing on towards their next destination, Uru Mais ... what could possibly be wrong?  
  
Everything could be wrong.  
  
Someplace far away where the very tip of Sol Tower could be seen, the Floating Castle was drifting like a lazy shadow in the midnight darkness over its next region, spewing poisonous Mist out. Out of a tiny window there, Gi was peering at the tower with deepest sorrow. The Mist there had suddenly been cleared out and the Genesis Tree was revived ... Vahn was there.  
  
Vahn was everywhere he looked. 


	3. Inner Turmoil

Author's Note: GASP! Ffnet isn't fully functional, but yet I can update! *^^* Very long chapter here, dealing with Uru Mais and some freaky dream stuff I've been into lately. o__o  
  
  
If you had been traveling as long as Vahn had throughout the vast Karisto Kingdom and always paused under the shadow of the Floating Castle, watching it spit out Mist that the Ra-Seru trio were impervious to, you would have gone crazy too if the object of your affection had been out of your sights for month ... most likely wanted to cleave you open ... and was of the same gender.  
  
Chunks of a rancid jelly-like substance from the defeated ball of slime ran down Vahn's knuckles and slipped to the earth below with a thick splat. Noa made a face and shook her hands free of it as well, dancing on the spot. Through the Mist that surrounded them on all sides, she could see their next destination. "Uru Mais is just up ahead!" she squeaked. "Let's go!"  
  
As always the only truly excited one of the trio, she darted ahead to the ancient temple with Gala and Vahn dragging behind. Uru Mais was a small area dotted with small stone houses, and a three-legged apparatus atop a high pentagon platform in the center.  
  
"This is the great temple of Uru Mais?" Gala said, following Noa's jumpy lead up the stairs to the structure. Vahn shrugged into the silence, tilting his head side to side to inspect the thing in front of them. "We should be able to put the Ruins Key that Mrs. Usha gave us somewhere in here!" Noa cried, snatching the key from Vahn and running around the apparatus in circles, searching for a keyhole.  
  
Her frantic dashing was stopped by a weary voice that called out of nowhere. "The Ruins Key will most likely not fit into any hole," it croaked. "The eyes of Tieg can see a hole within each of you that must be fulfilled. Go to the doors on either side of the temple ... and fill those holes... inside..." And with that it stopped, and when Gala looked down to question the voice, noticed Noa was missing. Her cheers were calling out from a hallway beneath the temple, signaling she had already gone to fill her own hole.  
  
Shaking his head slowly with a sigh, Gala walked to the edge and jumped off, walking to the door lit by a gentle blue light. Vahn did the same for the door with a red light, being bathed in its warmth as he entered a bright corridor.  
  
Wondering what could be the hole inside of him that the eyes of Tieg saw, he walked down the turning hallway until he came to a completely black void at the end. His eyes suddenly felt heavy and his legs turned to iron, weighing him down to the invisible surface below. His body collapsed and his head hit it hard, knocking him into a painful yet deep sleep.  
  
As if he were controlling a camera far above the places where his dreams took place, Vahn was stuck hovering over Rim Elm. It zoomed down towards his house and his eyes widened, he thought he was going to crash right into his own front door -- but he melted right through it and was jolted, like an electric shock, into the body of his younger self. His father, Val, was well and not crippled, and his mother was alive but very ill with the same virus that killed her. "Vahn, please stay inside and look after your mother while I go to find some Drake Water," he heard his father say. Hearing sound inside of a dream was a very odd and hurtful feeling, like there were speakers surrounding his brain and blasting sound out of his ears.  
  
All he could do was nod and watch as Val walked out of the house and off into the night. A coo of satisfaction was heard from behind him, and he turned to see a rocking wooden cradle in the corner of the house. Inside was his baby sister Nene, looking up at him with enormous violet eyes and an innocent smile.  
  
Suddenly his world became fuzzy and he swayed on his feet, groaning in a voice that had gone up half an octave due to his temporary change of age. He fell right back onto the wooden floor with a thud that sent Nene into upset tears of confusion, but he was right back into that painful, deep sleep again with her cries echoing throughout his mind. Once her voice faded, the weary one that he had heard at Uru Mais returned just as horrible as it was before. "That is not ... your hole inside," it said in a croak. "The eyes of Tieg see one much deeper that crosses many more emotional boundaries and has just been dug. Tieg hopes it does not upset you..."  
  
In a horrible flash of light he was kneeling in front of a thick puddle that showed his reflection for only a moment, but then it disappeared. "You are invisible, my boy," the voice said one last time but in a deviously quiet sort of tone. He could still feel himself moving, though, and stood to look for a door or way out. A hole high up in the ceiling was all that he could find after peering around through the eternal darkness, and it seemed as if just looking at it caused him to levitate up through it. He popped up inside of what appeared to be a throne room with a tall and thin purple-haired woman sitting on the throne, gazing down at her kneeling subjects.  
  
He was in Zora's throne room, in the Floating Castle.  
  
And the kneeling subjects in front of her were Gi, Lu, and Che Delilas.  
  
Even though he was invisible to them, he was so flustered that he had to duck for cover behind a column close enough to where they were, just for protection. "Gi knows already, but the Ra-Seru kids have revived the Genesis Tree of Sol," Zora said amusedly with a swing of her booted foot from its crossed position. "I want you three to pay a little visit to Koru and stop them." He could hear a quick, breathless mumble of "Yes, Lady Zora" from them that made her smile. "They should be arriving there within a matter of days, so be ready," she concluded. They mumbled that again and faded away in blurs of blue, pink, and green.  
  
Feeling curious, Vahn followed the blue blur that was Gi to a Mist-filled chamber. Gi manifested from the blur and walked in a slump to an open silver cocoon, where he lowered down onto it and stared where the ceiling would be. As Vahn was about to walk in, Lu stepped into the doorway and leaned on one side, looking disappointed yet concerned. "Gi, you really have to tell us what's wrong," she said in a firm tone.  
  
Gi turned over, blinked his crimson eyes at her ( which were brimming with a mysterious moisture ), and sighed. He sat up in an upset fury, and began rambling to her. "It's Vahn!" he said finally, and Vahn's jaw unhinged. "Ever since Tieg-knows-when, he's just been everywhere I look and in everything I think. It's driving me insane, but I think I know why. You know what I'm talking about ... you have the same problem with that hyperactive Noa girl." He looked up, desperate, searching for a clue that she didn't think he was insane.  
  
Rather, her face showed complete surprise but with no denial. "I know what you're talking about," she finally replied, fading to the edge of his cocoon and sitting by his side. "And for some reason you can't shake the feeling, even if we're supposed to be their mortal enemies?" He just nodded mutely, eyes cast to the floor bathed in the Mist that was supposed to bring him such serenity. Days and weeks and years of corrupting the world with just some stupid Mist to calm him was getting quite boring, perhaps the reason he was contemplating life other than being Zora's slave until the day he died. He would probably serve her in the Valley of Noaru once they got there.  
  
"I'm supposed to be his evil counterpart," he continued in a hopeless voice. "But how can I? This isn't supposed to happen ... not at all ... but it did." His hair became tousled into thick, unruly spikes as he raked his fingers back through it, gripping each spike in unexplained madness. "I don't even know if it's love or lust anymore because of this stupid voice inside of my head. I don't know what to do anymore, Lu..."  
  
As they sat in silence, comforting each other and rubbing out the sorrow that they alone felt within the Delilas family, Vahn felt his invisible self shuffling backwards into the wall beside the door, spine running parallel with it. This couldn't be real ... Gi couldn't have said that at any point, and neither could Lu about Noa. If the eyes of Tieg saw that this was the hole inside of his poor, miserable soul, then Tieg was blind. This was wrong ... this was all wrong...  
  
He began falling back into that sleep again, at an agonizingly slow pace. "You'll tell him when we see him, won't you?" Lu asked Gi, their voices beginning to echo and become distorted. Gi shook his head, now a moving blob of color. "I don't know ... it could go all wrong. This godforsaken thing could change the fate of Legaia as we know it." Vahn's vision began to blur and the world around him started to spin like an amusement park ride, picking up speed.  
  
This just can't be real, Tieg...  
  
"If we don't do anything about it and fight them and win, Koru will destroy Karisto Kingdom with the heat unless we say different..."  
  
Please don't say that he feels the same way...  
  
"If we don't say and fight them and lose, they'll continue ridding the world of Mist and we'll eventually die without energy for our Seru..."  
  
...please don't die, please don't go, Gi...  
  
"If we confess, things will stay the way they are and we'll either live a damned happily ever after or they'll slash our heads off..."  
  
No ... no ... please don't tell me...  
  
"We have to decide, Lu. I never knew that fate could lay in our hands so suddenly."  
  
As things faded into a swirling white void, Vahn began to materialize and he was rushing backwards, screaming at the top of his lungs if Gi could hear him. "GI! PLEASE JUST SAY YOU HATE ME!" he found himself bawling through incredible tears. His body hit something hard and he was pressed against it vertically, wriggling against invisible bonds, feeling tears of molten lava streaming down his face. He never thought that he could ever fall into the hole within his own soul.  
  
* * * *  
"Vahn! Vahn, are you all right?!"  
  
"Vahn, please wake up! Stop screaming!"  
  
A red light hit his eyelids and poured through, forcing them open at once. He was still screaming on and on about Gi until Noa and Gala's faces swam into focus. Noa breathed a sigh of relief and they pulled him to his feet, his arms slung over each of their shoulders for support. "Are you okay now?" she asked in a meek tone, looking just as deathly pale and surprised as he knew he did.  
  
He nodded and swallowed, unable to move. "I think Tieg tried a little too hard to show us those holes inside of us," she said with a quick sigh. "But look, we got the Fire Droplets from him while you were still asleep." She held up what looked like three large, frozen drops of red water that shimmered in her palm before she shoved them back into the item sack at her side. "What did Tieg show you? He showed me two things. One of my parents and me when I was a baby, and ... and ... OH! Look!" She pointed suddenly at something encircling Uru Mais like an enormous, scaly vulture eyeing its prey.  
  
It was the Juggernaut, with a pleased Songi standing by its head. Gala assumed the same freaked-out expression and wore it as they rode into view, his eyes locking from a distance with Songi's own. "Well, well, well, if it isn't the moron brigade!" Songi said with the usual sadistic glee. "Did you have fun with Tieg? I hope you did, because he has to go home now..." From there on for Vahn, it was a whirl of Noa and Gala dragging him off to the surrounding forest as Juggernaut opened its mouth wide, strings of saliva and blood stretching out and dripping from the fanged teeth within, and in one chaotic blast leveled Uru Mais to smoking heaps of the odd silvery metal and bricks that the platform and the small pueblo-like buildings around it were made of.  
  
Noa let out a scream of agony as the many bodies of Tieg rushed towards the sky like spirits, never to return. Gala now glared up at Songi in a rage he thought that he could contain from now on. "Songi! You ... you heartless bastard! What do you think you are, a god?! Destroying powerful souls like that with a Forbidden Seru! How dare you!"  
  
Songi just smirked and spat down at them, which landed inches from Gala's right foot. "I'm hurt, Gala," he countered smoothly. "Juggernaut had to burp, he just devoured some yummy humans." The dark purple Seru on his wrist, which had grown considerably in size, gleamed as did his fierce eyes with pure malice. "And don't you go calling me a heartless bastard, you better not be screaming that later. Until we meet again, dear morons!" Juggernaut faded from beneath his feet, and the sky warped to let him disappear into the same portal he always came out of.  
  
Gala was shaking with rage, and Noa was stomping furiously on the ground with her arms flailing. "I hate that Songi!" she cried, her voice echoing out into the wreckage that they stood in. "I hate him sometimes too," he replied quietly. Much unlike his chaos-protesting self, Vahn was sitting slumped against a tree with his eyes closed and his head back, neck exposed. Once their anger died down, he finally talked. "What was the second thing you saw, Noa?" he asked.  
  
She walked back over to him and sat down on the ground, cross-legged. "Ehrm, I don't really want to say ... that is, I dunno why I saw it, but ... you know Lu Delilas? She and Gi were there and talking. And she looked really upset. You didn't tell us what you saw yet." Attempting to cover it up, she perked up and peered at him patiently, head canted. He didn't budge as he thought the words over in his head so that they didn't sound wrong. Lately, everything sounded wrong. "I saw my mother when she was still alive but very sick ... and I saw Gi and Lu, too. They were talking about us. About me." Her shrill gasp made him open his eyes and stare up into the canopy of treetops and slanted rocks that pierced the sky.  
  
The sun was peeking through the leaves and shining in small rays onto his lifted face, trying to provide the warmth he knew he could find elsewhere. "You saw them too?" she cried, flailing her arms. "Wow, that's so cool! So I guess our holes are the same sizes and have the same stuff in them, huh?" Back to her bouncy self, she giggled and stood, hopping over to Gala. "Come on you two, let's go back and give the Fire Droplets to Doctor Usha!" She twirled in the air with an arm raised and darted ahead impatiently.  
  
Wondering how far from now his next meeting with Gi would be, Vahn pushed himself to his feet and followed her excited lead out of the area. He wasn't so sure what to do anymore ... he had heard the words Gi said in his dream that could be the turning point in Legaia's fate, and they were all too true. If they won, Buma would be saved and they could continue ridding the world of the Mist. But then the Delilases would die because their Seru would have no energy. If they lost, the three of them would die and Karisto Kingdom would remained unsaved -- and possibly destroyed by Koru.  
  
If all came down to it, they could win and he could commit suicide. That way he and Gi would be together in the Valley of Noaru forever.  
  
*Forever? Is that what it is? You think it's fate and love, Vahn? Hmm?*  
  
There was one option.  
  
  
  
  
Told ya it was weird ... s' what I get for listening to Enigma too much. O_O 


	4. One Step Closer...

Author's Note: I guess you can say this is building up to one of the last chapters, because this is the whole Nivora Ravine deal. ^^ Unless I follow one of my ideas for what comes after this thingy.  
  
  
Spending the next two days or so completely in thought, laying within the bed Mrs. Usha had set up in a guest room for him, Vahn thought that being cooped up inside of the Usha Research Center wouldn't be so bad after all. He wasn't near a window to see the Flying Castle out of, which only brought a squirming pain to the pit of his stomach.  
  
Noa seemed excited about staying here, because she was getting information from all of the scientists that she pretended to soak up -- he bet it went in one ear and slipped right out the other end without rattling her brain. Mrs. Usha also enjoyed the company while she was making meals and didn't quite mind her curious sniffing and poking at foods.  
  
Gala was ... well, Gala. He spent time in his own room meditating or training, and came out when needed. Vahn suspected that he was still very upset about what Songi had done to Uru Mais and the many bodies of Tieg, and at the same time acted that he still despised him. For some reason, he didn't feel the same way about Gi ... that feeling that your love for someone runs so deep, but never reached their heart because it was so heavy with animosity. Funny how he thought Gi hated him so much, but in actuality he had never done anything more than reduce him to a puddle of mush just by looking at him.  
  
*Stop giving me these ideas that maybe you don't hate me after all...*  
  
Somewhere around midnight, Vahn thrashed over in his bed and stared at the wall. He couldn't sleep no matter how hard he tried, because he was afraid he'd have some sort of dream about him, and when he did close his eyes, images of the two in a love-ridden embrace would appear.  
  
This shouldn't have been happening at all ... because the heroes of Legaia should not be queer. Those who bear the Ra-Seru should not be turning against their mission and locking their sights onto the enemies, or even think anything else besides 'die, you heartless bastard'. And Vahn, who was quite popular back home at Rim Elm, should not be queer at all. He should save the world of the Mist and return to Mei, who was waiting for him with open arms and feelings long suppressed.  
  
But that's not the way things worked now. He had forgotten all about Mei and his family and neighbors until now, and didn't feel the slightest pang of loneliness when he remembered their faces. He did when he thought of Gi, however -- and that was almost every second. The pain had become constant and usual now, so needless to say he was used to it already. If this wonderfully horrible ache was to somehow be relieved, then he wouldn't be too accustomed to that...   
  
How could it be taken away, anyway? If he knew that Gi felt the same way, which he was beginning to hope for ( now he didn't think he could live with his affection being countered by hatred ), if somehow he died right now without having anything said ... He could have made a list, but he was too emotionally drained to even move. And while he was thinking all of this, his problems only added up when Meta decided to tune in and give his thought on it.  
  
*Hmm ... you're simply falling apart, Vahn.* He could feel the muscles in his face tighten up into a frown. *If only you didn't feel this way, you'd be so much healthier without him ... you wouldn't be delaying this so much. You're putting aside the fate of the world for your own personal needs!*  
  
And that's when his hands clenched into fists to the point where the veins in his wrists popped up, and his prone form shook with fury. "SHUT UP!" he screamed into the silence.  
  
His nerves eased and his expression wilted, into that of a depression far below the one he had been in before. *Just keep your stupid self out of my business, Meta. You're attached like a leech to my arm only to help me revive the Genesis Trees, and that's all you should be concerned about. And while you're basically being invisible until you need to be, keep out of the only working portion of my brain.*  
  
Not regretting a word that he had said, rather thinking that he had proved that all Ra-Serus weren't helpful in all aspects of life, he turned over in bed to nuzzle his pillow. For the first time in too long, his eyes slowly closed and he drifted into a peaceful sleep that wasn't plagued with thoughts of Gi at all.  
  
* * * *  
The following morning, he was in a better mood and felt more well-rested than he had in a long time. He noticed that Meta was not the usual color of blood that had just been given oxygen, but rather a deeper sort of crimson that looked brown from afar. Like he cared anymore. Before Noa could dash in and drag him out of bed, nearly pulling his arms from their sockets in the process, he decided to get up himself.  
  
His mind wasn't working too well all of a sudden, in the first few moments one experiences after they awake. In the absence of a dream, his right hand unlocked from its position beside him and reached over to the space beside his left shoulder. All the room was on the left side, seeing as he had been nearly bunched against the wall where the bed was set, and where he expected someone to be laying. Not unlike his usual wake-up call, the lazy something of a smile crashed down hard when all he touched was his pillow and not a patch of warm, smooth flesh.  
  
Ah yes, angst at no more than nine in the morning. Every morning he wondered who he expected to be laying there, and every morning he knew the answer. It was just a matter of not facing the facts. Figuring it wasn't healthy for him to just lay there pining over someone he knew would never be his, he kicked back the covers and turned his legs so that they dangled over the edge of the bed and weighed him down to the floor.  
  
Colors shifted before his eyes, blotches of black and gray appearing in the corners of what he could see. He rubbed them hard with the heels of his palms until everything came back into focus, and stood up firm. No more crumbling today for Vahn, now that the morning session was over. Before he could take another step, the door burst inward and in rushed Noa, flailing her arms with her usual abundance of energy. "Good morning, Vahn!" she giggled, taking a bound forward and grabbing his hands. "You caught on already! At least I don't have to pull you out of bed again. Come out and see the bombs!" Before he could protest, her grip tightened and she dragged him from the bedroom, past some lab technicians who smiled and waved to them, and into the main laboratory.  
  
On top of the table sat the four complete TimeSpace Bombs, one being patted and stroked gently by Dr. Usha. He looked proud of them, by the way his tired face was pulled up into a wide smile. They were bigger than he thought they would be, and a rather blatant but dark purple with a blue-painted steel disk around the fuse. Just by looking at it, he thought that they would be more than enough to destroy Koru, unless it was -that- enormous. And this was going to blow up the ice barrier in front of Nivora Ravine? He assumed it'd blow up half the caverns and the flying debris would destroy the rest.  
  
"What do you think, Vahn?" Dr. Usha asked around his smile, making it look as natural as breathing. "We put our hearts and souls into making them and didn't finish until just a few hours ago." Vahn tried his best to smile in mock-amazement while staring at the bombs. Their purpose was to blow up two things ... he didn't expect them to look like a work of art if they were going to explode into a chaos of flames and smoke. "They're ... really great," he said stupidly, nodding.  
Dr. Usha clapped him merrily on the shoulder so hard that he stumbled a bit. "I'm glad you like them!" he exclaimed. "It seems your friends are eager to go, so I think you should go while it's still early. Best of luck to you all." He looked again to the bombs -- one was missing. Noa was probably halfway across the field already with it in her arms. Wondering also where Gala was, he slid one off the table and into both arms. He took a second one and stumbled again beneath the extra weight. As he ambled to the door, they barely fit through, but thankfully Gala was standing right there to stop him.  
  
He took one bomb and retrieved the other ("Nothing ... stops a warrior of Biron!" he found himself grunting later while he carried both on his shoulders) from the table. They found Noa on the lower lever cradling the remaining bomb, bouncing excitedly. "Let's go!" she said, turning and running as if she hadn't been carrying anything so heavy.  
  
* * * *  
The walk from the research center to Nivora Ravine was long, tiring, and probably pointless. They had been walking for at least an hour an half -- though it seemed double that -- when the swirling blue skies disappeared beneath the raised walls that surrounded the entrance to Nivora Ravine, and the rippling green grass under their feet turned to cold, gray stone. A shimmering barrier of ice was blocking the only path into the caverns that they guessed lead up into the mountain and where Koru was.  
  
Vahn drew in a breath, eyeing the barrier, having thoughts of "Are we really going to do this?" and "What if we lose?" or "Will I really have to fight him?" running loose within his head. Whatever they had to do, the trek through the caverns would hopefully be a long one, and he could walk slowly. Anything that would delay his next meeting with Gi.  
  
"We're finally here," he said, words entangled with a ragged sigh that could have brought tears to anyone's eyes. Noa, who had been standing patiently at his side, took her bomb and raced to the barrier with it. Before they could stop her, she had planted it and the fuse began to burn down.  
  
With the force of a rocket taking off in their faces, the bomb exploded and sent all three of them flying backwards. Vahn hit a stone wall some distance back, tidal waves of pain rushing up and down his spine. Frozen partisans scattered everywhere as well as rock from the cave walls, some stabbing down at the ground or like throwing darts into the walls close to them. When the dust cleared and the ravine stopped shaking, they got to their feet and looked at the giant hole that the bomb had created.  
  
Vahn knew just by the way that Noa looked at it, crunched over like a spring waiting to be released, that she was eager to dash in and kick some butt. He stopped her before any thoughts could click into her mind. "Noa, listen to me," he said. She turned around to face him with the most innocent of facial expressions. "I really hope you know what will happen if we win ... and if we lose. If we win, -they- die. She's going to die because there will be no more Mist. Do you understand me?"  
  
Her eyes suddenly expanded, allowing moisture to gather at the bottoms, shimmering ... daring him to say another word about it. "I understand," she replied in a quivering voice. "But we have to do this, Vahn! All of Karisto needs us. We can't let them slow us down, even ... even if we have to..." A single tear escaped her eye and journeyed down her cheek, which he quickly caught and brushed away.  
  
If everything went well, and their pride and devotion to Zora wasn't as strong as they hoped it was, Vahn thought he had a plan. "All we have to do is destroy that one Seru, then," he told her as her gaze drifted back to the cave entrance. "We'll see what we can do when we get there, but until then, don't worry about it. All right?" His hand dropped from her face, and she nodded slowly.  
  
With Noa clutching his hand tight for support until they had to part ways, they ventured together into the chilled depths of Nivora.  
  
  
  
  
Uwaa ... I'm SO running out of ideas here, so I'm delaying it a little. I'm not telling you what I'm thinking though, it has to be a complete surprise... ) Bwahahaha! Next chapter soon, though. --That is, once I update my OTHER stories. @__@ 


	5. Unleashed Emotions

Author's Note: Woohoo! We got some action, angst, and FINALLY romance in this painfully long chapter, as well as some... um, surprises. Yeah. ^^ I should really get around to updating Mortal Aeon though... I haven't done so in too long. Anyway, here we go!  
  
Gi wished he could be anywhere in the world at this moment besides here in Nivora Ravine. Back in the Floating Castle, in his lonely chamber, standing tall in a sea of corpses drowned in blood ... the Valley of Noaru, in Vahn's arms...  
  
He wished he could pine over anyone in the world besides Vahn. He was the one that had sparked his interest in the same gender out of nowhere, when he thought he'd be marrying a woman that was united with a Seru. When he thought he would live a miserably ever after in the kingdom of the Mist that he and his siblings had helped Zora create, maybe even continue the story of his need for carnage and chaos. But the story had ended too many chapters ago when he saw Vahn and his life was filled with these depressing pages that told of a romance he would never, ever have.  
  
And that's why, when the cavern shook with the impact of the TimeSpace Bomb that was set all the way down at the entrance to the ravine, anything that he was thinking had been pushed to the back of his mind -- and all that ran through his mind was, "He's finally here. He's finally coming to destroy me."  
  
Maybe Gi had been destroyed so long ago that he didn't remember it ... because when Che got to his feet first and swung his mighty weapon over his shoulder, neither he nor Lu moved from where they sat. Che looked confused for a minute, past the dangerous grin he wore, before speaking. "The hell's the matter with you two? They're here!" His voice boomed out into the silence, only to come back at him from all other angles.  
  
He muttered something along the lines of "I give up" as he turned away from them, raising his free arm into the air and shaking his head. His heavy footsteps echoed out as he marched alone towards where the Thunder Cavern entrance was, stopping when he took position. It was a while before Gi finally got to his feet and kept his head bowed and eyes closed as he had been when he was sitting. "Are you going to fight him?" Lu asked softly, knowing that if she said it any louder, his sanity would come crashing down.  
  
"No, I'm not," he replied. "I'm going to go see him and let him do whatever the bloody hell he wants to me. If he won't fight me because I'm not challenging him, so be it. If he takes advantage of this and tears me limb from limb, so be it. I'd rather die than be here wondering if he doesn't hate me after all. You can go on and chose for yourself, even help Zora destroy Karisto and build her own kingdom. She should've just done it herself instead of making us do her stupid dirty work. And she can't hurt me or anything ... I'm too far below humanity to even reach. When you can't see the light and you've fallen so hard for the enemy like this, life just isn't worth it anymore." On the last depression note of his speech, he sank to his knees with a gloved fist to his chest, and disappeared in a blue diagonal blur.  
  
Lu could only sit there in shock, knowing her eyes had brimmed with tears and her mouth had dropped open, contemplating the words that had hit her so hard... She would follow his footsteps for once. She scrambled to her knees and bowed her head, becoming a pink blur that raced towards the Wind Cave entrance.  
  
When she got there, she looked across to see that Gi had just settled upon a ridge high above the Fire Cave entrance, right knee cocked up and the same arm slung over it. His eyes penetrated the eternal darkness as they always did, though distant and wide like she had never seen them before. He looked as if he caught sight of Vahn, he would slide right off the cliff and into some uncontrollable insanity.  
  
For as long as they'd been living, Lu and her siblings had been following Zora's orders without question and hadn't even stopped once to think that maybe what they were doing was wrong or hurt other people. Did they even know how many innocent lives they ended in a flash of light that emitted from each of their Seru and a crescent of bright red life-liquid? It seemed to her now that Gi was the wisest of the trio ... realizing his mistakes and the path of life that he had wandered down. Though it was too late to mend the gaping wounds they made, they could always reflect and comment breathlessly, in a state of irreversible shock...  
  
*We've always been wrong. And now we're trying to do things correctly, and we're still wrong...*  
  
High-pitched giggles bouncing off the Wind Cave's stone walls jarred Lu to her senses, and her violet eyes went wider than she ever thought they could have gone. She stood from her place, hands loose and refraining from curling into fists to duel with, and looked down at the small area where Noa soon rushed into.  
  
The excited girl danced on her tiptoes, a wide smile across her face. "We did it Terra! We're finally at Koru! Ye~ah!" Terra, on the other hand, was giving off uncertainty that Noa's mind picked up. *You're just saying that to cover up what you feel,* she finally replied.  
  
Noa's smile dropped like it had been attached to an anvil, weighing down her mood with it. The truth always hurt the most, didn't it? But she had to learn to deal with the truth and stop hiding from the pain that it carried -- and did just that. Her hand flexed, cracking her wrist and fingers, shifting ever so slightly the feral that was fixed on top of it. *Go ahead and call for her. You have to be prepared.*  
  
She took a brave step forward, and then another, her feet making no sound upon the cold stone beneath them. "Lu, I ... I know you're here! Come and show yourself!" she yelled, recoiling at the sound of her own voice saying those threatening words. A pink flash came from the cliff above the entrance, catching her attention. It was Lu, who looked like she was walking to her own death...  
  
Before Vahn could even enter his sight, Gi looked worse. All color had left his skin and his body was slumped over as he sat in wait, like he was already dead. A corpse left with his eyes wide open and adjusted in sitting position. Sooner or later he was going to fall off the edge and break -- both physical and mental edges.  
  
Che was nowhere to be seen because he was planning to spring out and ambush Gala like there was no tomorrow. There probably was no tomorrow for them, but Gi seriously didn't feel like sharing that fact with his siblings.  
  
There came the echoes of footsteps from the Fire Cave, and Gi's eyes glazed over. Concerned about him, Lu looked his way. He had frozen completely, and in one swift motion had rose to his feet, standing motionless and cold like a statue. Vahn emerged from the cave, with Meta glowing his normal color as he talked. *Are you ready, Vahn? You know what may happen, or what may not. Please, just be yourself and do this...*  
  
Vahn nodded weakly and balled his hands into fists, letting his knuckles crack. His voice called out at such a loss of confidence that he expected Gi to roll out any minute, clutching his gut in hysterical laughter. "I know you're here, and there's something I need to tell you. Right now. I don't care if you behead me right now, but just come out and show yourself!"  
  
*My god ... that sounded so stupid...*  
  
And then it happened. Two ruby orbs pierced the darkness no more than ten feet from Vahn, and the echoes of footfalls invaded his ears. "There's something I need to tell you as well," came a low and smooth voice that made his entire body feel weak. Booted feet pulled a tall and sculpted body into view, which didn't help the Ra-Seru hero's situation either. "Finally, I get to see you again," he said rather calmly.  
  
Wondering if he wanted a response from that, the words stuck in Vahn's throat and out came a nonsense croak that struggled for a voice. He cleared his throat a few times, and swallowed hard. Where to start...? "Listen, Gi," he began. "Let me just get this off my chest right now before your dagger goes through it. You haven't stood in my way at all, and you've done nothing to earn my hatred. You've only earned my..." He tapered off there, unable to complete the sentence.  
  
But Gi tried to change the subject. Just a bit. "You would hate a man that does his job like this, though," he said with a loose shrug. "My job is to stop you. To kill you. To build the kingdom of the Mist on the very ground we're standing on now. And I can't quit, because it would mean my life." Something in there had struck a bad chord with Vahn, and he recoiled like he had been punched across the face. "But I guess that would make -your- job a hell of a lot easier, wouldn't it?"  
  
Vahn froze. His body was shaking from the impact of emotions hitting him all at once. Meta went quiet as well, from the quiet gasping that he had never paid attention to.  
  
"Wouldn't it, Vahn?"  
  
That did it. His vision blurred and he raced towards Gi with the gears in his head wheeling at the speed of light, instantly grabbing at the fabric of his shirt collar and twisting it within his angrily confused grasp. "No, it wouldn't!" he screamed. "I don't want to kill you! I can't bring myself to hate you under any circumstance, and I really don't care about my mission anymore! As long as I'm suffering this way, the world isn't worth saving at all!" When he regained some sense, he realized that hot tears were spilling down his cheeks uncontrollably, and that Gi didn't anything along the lines of cold and unforgiving ... or confused.  
  
No ... he looked like he completely understood...  
  
His eyes were no longer hard and glazed, focused upon one thing with amounts of fear, but now as soft as those of the quivering boy that was leaning against him. Like any minute now, he would cry too. "So you feel the same way too," he said distantly, emotions undetected in his voice. Vahn looked up, wondering if he felt as stupid as he must have looked, and tried to fight back the tears. "You ... you too?" he asked, sounding far from surprise, and Gi could do nothing but nod.  
  
Every bone in his body seemed to go limp -- well, you couldn't call -that- thing a bone, and it certainly wasn't limp -- making him collapse, using the taller young man as his support. "So I've been suffering and killing myself for absolutely nothing," he mumbled into Gi's shirt. "For too long I thought that you've hated me, and that these efforts would be for nothing. But now..." He'd never been hit by something so hard, and found it hard to finish through the pain that suddenly came at him. But Gi didn't need him to, and brought his arms tight around Vahn. "It's all right," he whispered, hoping to ease the emotions that had obviously been pent up for a long time.  
  
Not too far away from them, the same sort of problem was going on with Lu and Noa. Noa not being able to properly argue with Lu's wanting to die already, she was quick to dissolve into tears. "I'm telling you, Lu!" she yelled, shaking her head, releasing the tears from her eyes that were to journey down her cheeks. "I'm not going to kill you no matter what you say! I can't!"  
  
But Lu, on the other hand, was bent on reversing her mistakes only by erasing them with her miserable existance. "Please, Noa," she pleaded with a hopelessness that would have made Lady Zora sick. But did she care anymore? No. "Just one stab and it'll be over ... it won't hurt me a bit." At that, Noa kept on shaking her head until her neck hurt, and she thought she was going to go crazy. "I WON'T!" she screamed, collapsing to her knees. "I can't do that to you, Lu! There's something inside of me that won't allow me even if I wanted to! I..." She stopped to try and catch her breath, hiccuping once. But she couldn't continue even then, through her hysterics.  
  
Lu kneeled beside the girl and wound her arms tight around her shaking form. "If I could help you save the world, then I would die," she whispered fiercely. "It's better if I just left this world already so I wouldn't have to deal with this. Nobody would want me around, right...?" Noa's head instantly popped up, her high ponytail of pink tresses flying backwards. "That's not true!" she cried. "I would! Please understand!" She herself didn't understand, because she threw her arms under Lu's and buried her head in her chest. It had been since her very early childhood that she had been cared for in any sense, and right now that was all she wanted. And right now... that was all that Lu wanted, too. To sit just like this, feeling like something had been resolved.  
  
Screams seemed to be coming from around the cavern, nobody paying attention to one another but their ex-rivals, like all hell had been torn loose between just six people. And the only ones who had actually fought were Gala and Che, with Che losing just as expected in the battle between real good and evil. Gala stood over the fallen warrior as he lay on the ground, trying to take in oxygen, but to no avail. "Why don't you ... just finish me already?" he gasped. "I'm going to die anyway ... so stop my suffering right now." Gala continued to stare down at him, feeling no regret -- but he couldn't end his life like this, either.  
  
"Biron does not allow the senseless death of one who is critically injured," he stated coldly. And he turned away, folding his arms across his chest, refusing to hear another word of it. Che weakly reached an arm up, placing his hand flat on the ground, and attempted to push himself up. "You're a coward," he growled quietly. "I asked you to kill me, and you refuse." He almost got a knee up, but he just fell back down again with a loud grunt of pain.  
  
Gala cast a glance over his shoulder, smirking somewhat cruelly. "I'd rather watch you suffer so that you know how it feels," he said. For someone who was usually merciful and a pacifist unless forced, Gala was acting very strange. On something of a bright side, at least he wasn't drowning in his own tears like his comrades were.  
  
But something suddenly wasn't letting Gi surrender already and transfer sides. Even if it killed him due to the lack of Mist, unless he separated the parasitic Seru from his soul, he would gladly die knowing that he had helped Vahn. Something at this very moment was consuming him as he hugged the hero close ... something he didn't trust. And that's why he pulled away, leaving Vahn with a curious look.  
  
His head began to buzz and ring, rattling his senses, and his vision began to blur with an evil sort of crimson hue. He staggered backwards, clutching his head, and groaning in pain. "W-what's wrong?" Vahn stammered, reaching out to try and hold Gi on balance. But Gi stepped backwards, shaking his head madly. "Get away from me ... please ... she's going to make me kill you..." His entire body shook violently and his eyes slammed shut.  
  
Vahn didn't retreat at all -- rather, he moved towards him, guard up and arms extended. "She who?" he asked. Gi's head shot up and his eyes flew open, now a pair of hideous black voids that would have shimmered like diamonds of malice if they would allow any light through. "I said get away! NOW!" he yelled.  
  
It hit him like a blow to the head with a brick, and he immediately backed away into the nearest cavern wall. *Zora is trying ... to turn him against me, isn't she?*  
  
And things only got worse. As Noa had pulled Lu to standing position, her body had shaken as well and her voice had dropped to a lower tone. Her eyes were blank just like that of her brother's ... as well as Che's, who had suddenly stood from his slow and painful death of bleeding upon the ground.  
  
For the first time in hours, Vahn looked to his right to see Noa in the same position as he, looking more scared and confused than he did.  
  
For the first time ever, the Delilas siblings were their true rivals.  
  
  
  
Told ya so! ^^ Woohoo, I'm really starting to love this story and where it's gonna go. I hope you will, too~. 


	6. Unholy Orders

Author's Note: Hmm, I have some plot prodders ready for this fic... I think you'll like them. Chapter features some definite romance, which tons of angst accompanies, and some violence. ^^ Ooh.  
  
  
He had waited so long for the moment where the object of his every affection, who he was sure to place on a pedestal far above himself, to admit that the feeling wasn't one-sided. And a happily ever after it would be, with no hassles of saving the world from certain destruction, full of the laughter and joy that he hadn't experienced in months. Nobody would have died, no hatred would have been bared ... but still people needed his help.  
  
But who cared? He'd helped them enough and they did nothing in return, and they did nothing when he was in deeper trouble. Losing your life and sanity to an odd set of emotions was a lot more serious than losing it to some misty substance...  
  
What on earth happened to him, the valiant hero protecting the weak and innocent?   
  
The footprints he left in the road up to Nivora Ravine said that he had continued only for one purpose: to see Gi. They said that he had dragged on and on, regardless of how heavy his heart was, to see his damn enemy. Walking a good amount of green miles to his death -- or so he thought.  
  
The valiant hero and the enchanting villain had fallen headfirst for each other and now it was bared. The bouncy sidekick and the agile right-hand woman had sworn never to kill each other. However, the strong and silent warrior had emerged on top of the strong and loud powerhouse of an enemy.  
  
But either way it went, all three of them ... the Delilas siblings... they were their enemies. Gi, Lu, and Che were all standing strong, facing the trio of heroes, vision gone red and senses gone numb. It would have been the same thing for said heroes if a high and cruel laugh hadn't echoed into the chamber out of nowhere.  
  
A purple shadow darted all around the cavern, following the laugh. The siblings turned to face the spot where the shadow finally landed and materialized as the tall and curved outline of a person. They dropped to their knees in respect when Zora showed herself -- more respect than either had ever had for her.  
  
"How very, very touching!" she cackled, a slender hand rising to her cheek. "So my little helpers have found the meaningless of life!" Her expression darkened, and the smirk that accompanied her laugh crashed down into a frown. "I'm surprised and so very sickened." Her hands lashed out to gesture to the heroes, who had assumed defensive stances, and her fingers snapped. "Kill them."  
  
Her cackle followed as she backflipped and faded into white, then black. Gi, Lu, and Che all turned back to face their opponents, eyes gone black and feelings absent for the moment. Vahn looked over to Noa once more, a single tear hanging off the curve of her jaw. "What are we gonna do?" she called out to him, her voice entangled with agony that could've brought anyone to tears.  
  
He just shook his head and sighed. This was too hard ... too confusing, too fast. He didn't want to kill Gi, but did he have a choice? Was there a way to heal him? "Try not to hurt her," he replied softly.  
  
Noa's eyes went wide, and cold steel suddenly kissed the flesh of Vahn's neck. He was paralyzed there with his head cocked to the side. "You touch my sister and all of you will suffer," came a growl that was definitely not Gi. It was Gi with malice holding his heart like a vice.  
  
They were frozen in that position, one threatening the other, bodies so close but hearts so distant. "Put your dagger down, Gi," he breathed. He could feel his body temperature rising, blood pounding in his head. "We don't want to harm your sister, and I don't want to harm you. Just put it down and don't do this to me..." Sweat gathered around his neck where the dagger rested, dripping slowly down his flesh in cold droplets.  
  
Silence stood between them, and it was so depressing to be caught like this. Was it going to be a bloody ever after for him, and Gi's internal struggles would have been for naught? The remainder of his life controlled by Zora -- or plagued by the moments that he did, killing the trio of heroes in the process and regretting it? Whichever way it went ... some part of it, big or small, wouldn't be pretty.  
  
A small choke was forced out of Vahn as the blade began pressing itself forward and blindly desiring to go further. He had to do something to stop Gi... hitting him would only trigger him to fall backwards, and it would create a large upwards stroke rather than a thin, deep gash.  
  
There came a shrill scream and a small flash, and his eyes averted as far as they would go to where Noa and Lu were. It seemed like Lu had been driven crazy enough to dive right in instead of going about Gi's slow and torturing method. Noa had involuntarily painted a crescent of shimmering red beneath her feet, while the same liquid ran from a wound in her cheek like a faucet.  
  
Her right hand clamped itself over the injury and she flinched at her own touch, left hand curling into a fist. "Lu, please don't do this!" she gasped, in a bad effort to hold back tears. "You're not the one killing me! I want you here... and I'm still not going to kill you no matter what you say.... or do. Just because you're doing this against your own will... doesn't move the block that doesn't let me harm you..." To contradict how slowly the tears had gathered in her eyes, they shot down her cheeks and kept their paths moist.  
  
But nothing that she said registered much with Lu... she was poised for the kill and she couldn't stop herself. As she neared Noa, the terrified girl's eyes darted momentarily to Vahn and Gala ... they seemed to be just as bad as she.  
  
For lack of a better plan, she sank to one knee and waited until her temporary rival's shadow loomed over her. As her arm raised, she then tore to one side and scrambled to her feet, running towards the middle of the section of chamber that was theirs. In a murderous rage, Lu followed.  
  
Vahn had been standing there, watching her try to escape... how he wished that he was in a position like that. Anything but this, where the slightest movement would spell pain or death. He couldn't win Gi back by fighting him, and he certainly wouldn't win an internal battle with himself if he did...  
  
... could he win him back by loving him?  
  
When one has a knife pressed tight against their neck, and it's far too close to breaking the skin, the flow of sanity in their brain is halted and whatever remains of gut instinct takes control. At this moment, his gut instinct was telling him to go with that crazy idea and see if anything happened. The worst that could happen was... well, he would die.  
  
Depending on a miracle and Meta's ability to heal him somewhat, he slowly inhaled and let his insane backup system force his eyes closed and slide into his body. "Gi." The voice was quiet, touching, distracting in its own way. Gi blinked very hard and stared into space for a second as a harrowing darkness loomed out of his vision. That second was all the "hero" needed to slide his left hand backwards, not caring much that it touched down upon Gi's upper thigh in its journey for his free hand. He found it, and wound his fingers around the other set gently but... tightly. Gentle in his compassion, tightly in his silent vow that he would never let go.  
  
The words that followed had no hesitation, no second thought behind them. They just spewed without control, like he somewhat feared his own blood would if he wasn't careful. "I didn't tell you yet how much I love you. Even if you hold me like this until we rot, it won't change. I love you so much that I'd apologize for bleeding all over you if you beheaded me."  
  
His grip tightened ever so slightly, and he felt a dangerous tremor running through the body that held the dagger threateningly. To make sure that nothing stupid happened right when he thought he had things under control, his right hand raised up slowly and cupped Gi's wrist tenderly. He held it steady with little power, not sure what to do... "I came all this way to tell you that, and I'm not about ready to let Zora's hatred cloud your sight." His hand began moving away from his own neck as slow as possible, to make sure that there was no resistance -- none.  
  
Exhaling through his nose a breath he didn't know he'd been holding, he guided the weapon away and kept his hand there. As he began turning to face Gi, his hand slided skillfully up towards the dagger, body and hand moving together. He stopped in quite an odd position: his body was almost on top of the other's, his fingers were prying off the grip on the weapon one by one, and Gi's raised arm had been wound around him from the turn.  
  
"You even admitted it without so many words yourself... if you hadn't cared, I would have been dead and decomposed by now. If you still can't see me in reality... then let this memory be buried with me..." Just like that, again without hesitation or any sense of what in the world he was doing, he arched his neck forwards and dismissed the gut instinct by pressing his lips ever-so-gently against the other's... once more testing for hesitation, for a violent reaction.  
  
His eyes closed and thanked Tieg for not abandoning him now, and would have sank in and relished the delightful warmth that pulsed from his soul and invaded the blood running through his arteries and veins ... if he wasn't watching his step. It was like sticking a hand in a tank of piranhas that hadn't eaten in months...  
  
  
Even if he was on his guard, he focused too much on that warmth. The piranhas saw the flesh they desired and sprang for it ... the muscles in Gi's back twitched and tightened, and the pleasure was met with pain before it could be quickly broken. Vahn was unable to pull the dagger from his grip, which tightened once more, and his arm retracted like measuring tape, stopping and raising back and above his own head. "I still remember you," he growled fiercely. "It is not her hatred blinding me, it is my own! I hate myself for succumbing to you, and I hate you for thinking that fate didn't make us polar opposites for a reason!"  
  
Before Vahn could defend himself or protest, he found a scream of pain tearing through his chest and surfacing through his gaping mouth just as his flesh was torn. His vision and visage was sprayed with warm red, and he felt as if he had been trapped in some horrific, unforgiving world...  
  
As the ground did not object to his temporary stay and the blood that was thrown upon the canvas from wounds running across his left arm and torso, a familiar high and cruel laugh invaded Gi's senses. But it did not force him to drop to one knee in respect, or grin at the defeat ... because its owner was nowhere to be seen this time around. Zora seemed to be mocking him...  
  
... it couldn't be. He felt no pain, no scorn, no mockery while he was controlled.  
  
  
  
In a frenzy, Gi blinked his eyes hard and looked down at his hands. His hand contained a dagger, sharp side fresh with blood... the other hand, bloody as well. He lifted his gaze upwards, where his wide eyes froze cold as anything upon Vahn. But he could not scream... he could not do anything... his mind would not latch onto any coherent thought.  
  
Meta flared an insane red in an attempt to heal the hero, but to no avail. This only worried Gi further... did it mean that because a Ra-Seru could not work without a functioning human body, that he was...?  
  
No. Vahn was twitching in extreme discomfort and pain, and every now and then he would cough and audibly bite back that which plagued him. The Delilas boy had this look on his face, with his stained palms upwards and extending, and the storm of things in his expressive eyes... that just cried, "I've murdered an angel."  
  
But the angel refused to let go of life like that and keep his loyal word... even if it was the last breath he would ever waste. It was just one attack, but like Gi's own loyal word -- he was an expert at dealing fatal blows. So he gathered his energy into a small ball, and lifted his head up just so that gazes of pain and agony could meet. "I told you... I'm sorry for bleeding all over you..." And something in those words just made him snap, with a worried sob of sorts that echoed throughout the entire cavern. He dropped his weapon and paid no mind to the sharp sound of metal against stone, and took a knee by the fallen one.  
  
Tears were congregating slowly from either corner of his eyes, then blazed trails down his cheeks with speed not demonstrated seconds before. His arms made sure to avoid the wounds as he turned Vahn over onto his back and cradled his head in his own lap. The image of a fallen angel was one that nobody, no matter how cold they were, could ignore without tearful sympathy.  
  
"Vahn, I... I'm so sorry," he whispered, emotions clogging his airways and strangling his voice. "It's me... I'm here. That bitch, she... I... I'm just so sorry... forgive me..."  
  
There was a struggle for air in both, and Vahn opened his eyes. Tieg only knew how much it hurt as well to see Gi crying... had he the strength he would have sat up and fully embraced him. He wasn't quite sure if he was crying from his own pain or from that of his lover... "It... isn't your fault, I forgive you" he whispered in return, but his voice was so weak that it was barely there.  
  
Gi stood up with Vahn limp in his grasp, and pressed his own warm cheek down to the other's to recover the warmth he could feel leaving him.  
  
Leaving him...  
  
He could barely stand to say it or even associate the two thoughts. It sounded selfish, but right now he didn't care about his siblings too much. Warmth battled frost on two levels of skin, as he planted a kiss on Vahn's forehead that was far too gentle and loving in its deliverance to be believed done by him.  
  
"Don't leave me, please..."  
  
His head was bowed and they disappeared into darkness, then light. A haunted feel overcame the remaining four people as a voice waltzed with a mysterious mountain wind that entered. "I love you..."  
  
  
This is so sappy I can't believe I'm the one writing it. ;_; WAAAAAH~ I'm so busy with all these other fics that I really should start on the next chapter soon so I don't wait another three months. 


	7. The Most Dangerous Game

Author's Note: Oi, tons of confusion and unpretty things in here. Drama, violence, whoo. Sorry for the delay, I've been working on it between finals and the flu. ;_;  
  
  
"I hate you!"  
  
Noa instinctively rolled to one side, some sparks flying as Lu's blow missed her target and hit the floor instead. Said 'target' tumbled away and managed to get to her feet, getting tired and upset from dodging like this. Even if Lu had hit her, nothing could compare to the pain when she said that. The polar opposite of what she wanted to hear.  
  
So painful, that ... even thinking about it now brought a sharp pang to her chest, to her heart. The corner of her heart that didn't pump blood, but rather pumped emotions to her mind. As the hell-bent aggressor turned to strike again, she slammed her eyes shut and let herself fall to her knees. She was aware that tears were streaming down her face like no tomorrow, and she was crying as loud as she could. And for Noa, that was pretty loud.  
  
She just waited for the thundering footsteps to come near her, and for a red flash to take over everything, and for her soul to just take wing and drift away to the Valley of Noaru.  
  
But it didn't happen.  
  
The air around her was completely still, no motion from her or Lu whatsoever. Were it just a trick, she didn't want to take a chance and look. "... You're crying," Lu said softly, as if she were mystified. Noa quieted down and ran the back of her hand across her face, harshly wiping away the tears. One digit after another, one person after another, Zora's grip on her three minions was slipping.  
  
But until the last digit slid away, an iota of hatred still remained. And that one little bit counted for everything.  
  
Lu seemed stuck in a web of Zora's hatred, her own emotions, and a thick confusion. She couldn't make a movement, because along would come a spider and devour everything she had worked to make and destroy thus far. The confusion shone through in her voice, and in her eyes. "You ... still won't kill me, even if I try so hard to kill you?"  
  
Noa opened her eyes, and let her vision clear. It had been too long since she had cried so hard and the truth and the world had been so distorted. She suddenly put her faith into her reaction time, just in case this was one big bold-faced lie and trick.  
  
Couldn't torture herself enough to avoid Lu like this... "I still won't," she replied softly. Brushing off her knees, she got to her feet slowly and made sure to keep low and ready just in case anything was to happen. "I won't even attack you back, for all that it isn't worth." She sounded dead serious, far more serious than even when she talked about her dreams or her parents. This was life or death, times two.  
  
The Delilas girl seemed to be frozen, not poised to strike again. Noa tested her courage, her speed, and her foolish curiosity by approaching her with a hand extended. "... Lu?" And when there was no violent lash outwards, she continued to walk closer, closer ... and closer still...  
  
A slow, hard blink. "Noa." A single tear slipped from her eye as she opened both again, her gaze directed to the ground. Realization, shame, regret. Her right arm raised up slowly -- weakly -- reaching across a distance so small but so wide. "H-hurry ... help me before she comes back to me again..."  
  
Not knowing much of clever things to do, she prayed that life lessons were true and that she could prevent her own murder. That extended hand reached out to secure a bond that was on the verge of breaking forever, gently leading Lu closer. One thing forgot to lead to another, but that was how her mind was working now. As soon as she was sure she could feel their hearts quivering together, could feel the shudders from her sobs, she caged the beast and let something else loose by meshing her lips with the other's, and...  
  
A blinding light tore through the cavern as Che lifted his enormous hammer off of Gala's chest cavity and swung it back over his shoulder. "Weakling," he chuckled, watching the fallen warrior writhe in an attempt to get back onto his feet. He managed to get himself to one knee and raise his right arm in the air. One shot at keeping himself alive, he couldn't blow it and be pounded into the ground just one more time.  
  
Just one more chance... "Ozma, please help," he whispered hoarsely. The Ra-Seru glowed a magnificent blue, that glow streaming through the air in the blink of an eye. It came to the ground in the form of crackling energy, from which a levitating Spoons creature materialized. Its healing power was generally used to heal all three heroes, but he needed its strength all for himself right now.  
  
The creature crouched, metal grinding against metal as it did so, and beams of holy light blasted from the several eyes around its body. The beams ascended into the air, merged close to the ceiling, and promptly came crashing down upon him. As it faded into nothingness, he regained the strength to get to his feet and firmly look Che in the eye. He drew his right fist back, and he nearly choked on his anger as he tried to speak.  
  
"Stay with me." It was quiet, like the world might shatter on top of them if someone spoke too loudly. Apparently the strength of Noa's love had dominated Zora's hatred and brought Lu back to normal. The normal that -she- wanted, and wished could be by her side forever and ever.  
  
* * * *  
And somewhere off in the sky above it all, spewing Mist until it was all pushed away by the valiant efforts of the Ra-Seru heroes, the same wish was made. Except by Gi, who had taken Vahn to the safe hazard of his chamber in the Floating Castle. He had coaxed Meta to heal him, and to trust him now. Vahn lay in the same cocoon that Gi favored, which was surprisingly warm. The betraying servant kneeled at his side, keeping him company. But the way it was now, it looked more like he was the psychiatrist and Vahn was his patient.  
  
"I saw you talking to your sister about me." Gi blinked hard, and his hand froze where neck met shoulder. Something about that spot that was always completely random. Vahn forced out a smile, and closed his eyes. "You can blame Tieg for that. He showed me how serious this situation really is, but it didn't make me regret a thing."  
  
Damn it all, he'd been trying to forget everything about that, and now it was returning. But Gi being himself, he didn't show it and slid his hand down from its position, over the dangerous Ra-Seru, and to his hand. "I've made up my mind. I can't go on like this much longer, and I really don't feel like dying." Almost as if they read each other's minds, they grabbed each other's hands and wound up in some contorted but strong lock.  
  
When he rose to his feet, Vahn opened his eyes to look up at him. "... So I'm going to teach Zora not to screw around with our heads," he concluded. Vahn shot up straight, but a horrible pain in his torso forced him back down almost as quickly. He bit his lip to hold in a loud scream, and closed his eyes to prevent it from coming out in the form of tears. The hero always had to be invincible and hide everything that hurt.  
  
This only angered Gi more, as he was furious with himself for letting himself be manipulated into nearly killing him -- and even more furious with Zora for being behind it. But no more, and he would release his siblings from her grip as well. Screw the kingdom of the Mist, screw everything that done to help her. But that decision didn't bring back all of the people they killed, the locations they destroyed.  
  
Surely she would be somewhere in this vast castle now, and it would be easy to find her. "You stay here and rest," he whispered, slowly bending down and testing for a reaction by gently brushing Vahn's lips with his own. And when he kissed back, he refrained from breaking it with a smile and applied pressure for one split second.  
  
And as Vahn opened his eyes, a loving warmth seeped through his body and Gi was gone. Only the serene Mist of his chamber surrounded him, which failed to fill him with cold. He turned on his side to face the dark, open doorway, and placed his free hand over his Ra-Seru. "At least this Mist feels like salvation," he said to himself.  
  
Some distance away, Gi had materialized in front of Zora's throne. Empty, of course. Maybe she figured that he was coming after her and that it was wise to hide. "You can run and break a heel, but you can never hide," he laughed darkly. The more he walked, the more he sensed that he could feel her. Negative emotions basically oozed from that woman.  
  
Just when he thought that his search wasn't getting anywhere, he was drawn to the door where the attached balcony was. Hoping that his senses were still as reliable as he thought they were, he took off towards the door.  
  
The darkness of the castle turned into blinding daylight, not helped by the facts that they were so high above the ground and he hadn't been outside in hours. He slammed his eyes shut and raised an arm in front of them, waiting until his eyes stopped burning and adjusting.  
  
His sense of hearing sped its progress along, as that all-too-familiar laugh invaded the silence around him. "Killed them so soon?" she asked sarcastically. "Strange, I didn't hear the explosion." One of her arms raised up from her side and along her neck, cupping the right side of her face in amusement. A gesture he knew too well.  
  
Immediately he shook with rage, and lowered his arm to his side. His fingers wrapped tight around the hilt of his dagger, and his eyes shot open. He stared her right in the face, and he could see right through that smirk of hers -- right down to the fear. And she knew it.  
  
"Cut the crap, Zora," he spat at her. It was a change from putting her proper title before her name, which she obviously caught onto. She swiped a hand aside in anger, leaning forwards. "Excuse me?!" she screeched.  
  
Her smirk disappeared, and now he bore it. "I told you to cut the crap. Remember that little joke you made about finding someone to share my life with? Well, I've found them. Or should I say him?" He saw the way she froze in shock, and pulled his weapon from its holder. "And you tried to tear him away from me. Just as I feel like tearing you limb from limb right now."  
  
She began to stutter in protest, as she knew how very strong he was, and even more so when he was angered. A glaring light bounced off his dagger, and it wasn't just the rays of the sun. Right now, the way he felt could make the sun run cold and suck the light from every star.  
  
Faster and more fatal than she could ever see or believe, all that remained of Gi was his shadow as he dashed forward. "BURNING SLASH!" he screamed, and two screams joined when the blade burst into flames the second before it was swiped horizontally across her lower torso.  
  
His scream of fury died down first, and he resumed a rediculous composure. She clamped her arm over the long wound, which bled far too quickly to be immediately controlled. And she was staggering backwards in long steps, heading for the small edge... "Y-you...! I will make you pay for betraying me and see to it that your bodily materials are used for fertilizer!!" she screamed.  
  
Even so injured, she wasn't -that- weak. Not even by one single blow. Her available arm lifted up and shook violently in the air, palm pointed to the sky ... and were he not defending everything he lived for, he would have turned and ran. "Dark Typhoon!" she called.  
  
A sliver of heaven was corrupted and rejected from the sky, falling into her capable grasp. Her palm lowered down to be level with his face, and a cirrus of oblivion lashed straight out at him. Without a sound he was struck in the throat and upper chest cavity, pain quickly leaking to every other part of his body. Just as it finished invading him like poisonous lymph, the back of his head smashed through the top of the open doorway and continued his descent back inside of the castle.  
  
Vahn was obviously not deaf -- he'd heard the screams and the crashes. Not only did it disturb his rest, but it worried him as well. He slowly sat upright and moved to the edge of the cocoon, blinking his eyes hard to adjust to the odd colors. *Are you sure you can make it out there, and be ready if something bad is happening?*  
  
Stupid Meta. Always worrying at the wrong time, always giving him a larger headache. It was his body, his pain, so obviously he would know what he was able to do! "I'm sure," the back of his mind grumbled.  
  
As he stumbled around in infinite nothingness, not knowing his way around at all, he tripped over a stair but caught himself hanging on an armrest of Zora's throne. Meta began to glow a bit, shedding a hazy red light on the area around him which made for better traveling. But he couldn't see where he remembered the doorway being, as it was nothing but darkness...  
  
A slow but high laugh came out of nowhere. Every muscle in his body twitched.  
  
He touched the teal gem of his Ra-Seru, which flooded a whole lot more with a much brighter light. Violet, red, and ... pure black. It was Zora, but no Gi as far as he saw.  
  
Even with the sudden flare, she was too raveled in the conflict to notice that Vahn was there. She was speaking to the ground. "Never betray your master," she said, with a need for energy expressed in her tone, raising the same arm up (the other was still clamped about the wound). Air and time warped, and a shadow rose from the floor.  
  
Not something she conjured, but ... a shadowed figure. And from the pained and struggling growl that was emitted with a string of deft dagger strikes, he nearly died when he placed that voice on Gi.  
  
"Never toy with your followers!" he half-yelled, also sounding quite exhausted. Fire and darkness collided, and tore through each other with a flash that expanded throughout the main chamber like that of an explosion. Vahn's light was cancelled out, and he turned his head away from it.  
  
Silence fluttered down to earth like the last feather of a fallen angel.  
  
Her body was seen flipping over the ledge of the balcony, tumbling down to earth. Gi was encased in a large, semi-transparent sphere of dark matter, looking like he was sleeping soundly.  
  
Time defied everything as Vahn raced from his position to where the sphere was, not enabling him to get there in time. The demon turned angel was on his way to the true darkness, the darkness before the light. 


	8. Beginning of the End

Author's Note: Even more confusion in here. x_x I'm going to try and get this fic over with first so I can focus on the other three/four. This chapter contains spoilers about the ending and stuff near it, so if you didn't beat it (uhh... like me.), then I advise you not to read. But here you go. Some good sap. ^^;  
Darkness ... then light...  
  
Oh no, had he died?  
  
There was absolutely no warmth, but he could not feel himself shiver either. And the light was just there, not caught through his eyelids. He could have sworn that his eyes had been closed in the last thing he had remembered...  
  
Where exactly was he, and where was Vahn? Where was that bitch Zora, too?  
  
He had seen her go flying backwards before her damn bubble of black energy had encased him, and he had felt very tired. His body never knowing it was a trap, he'd shut his eyes a second before realizing that he was on his way to dying and couldn't open them again.  
  
Death in Legaia isn't as bad as it seems anywhere else -- everyone knows that the ones who pass on, pass to the Valley of Noaru. Would he be going there? He had been corrupted once to destroy Karisto and unite Seru and mankind ... would he be rejected from such a glorious afterlife and be left in some enclosed nothingness?  
  
All he knew is that he would probably never see his siblings nor Vahn ever again. He would exist until the end of time ... alone.  
  
Suddenly he felt himself drifting back, like he had been separated from his body. As if he was a soul floating back, he shuddered deeply and tried to regain control of his extremities. Not staring out of closed eyes like he had imagined it to be, but rather feeling everything sort of come back into existence beneath and around him.  
  
He felt alive, but barely. When the little bit of his brain wandered back that told him it was okay to open his eyes, he did. A hand was gripping his, and he shuddered oddly in joy. Vahn? Was it him, was he here?! Was fate so kind to give him a second chance and just let them have their happily ever after already?!  
  
"Gi, you came back!" cried a high voice.   
  
No ... just Lu. No...  
  
His settings solidified from their melted sort of way through his eyes, and he knew that he was back in Nivora Ravine once more. Damn it. Fate was being a bitch and was just making him say goodbye to the two people who were most important in his life before his positive corruption.  
  
To roll onto his side to face her hurt like nothing he'd ever felt before -- of physical pain, anyway -- and his body twitched violently afterwards. "Ssh, you're all right," she said, placing a hand ever so gently on his body. For no good reason, probably the reason all people had who felt they were staring death right in the face, a tear escaped his eye and slid sideways down his cheek towards his ear.  
  
That's when Che arrived, strangely found without his weapon. "Gi, what the hell happened?" he asked gruffly, but still quietly. "You disappeared and then came back. What happened to Zora? ... What happened to you?"  
  
It was either her name or his weakness that caused him to shudder. "I thought she killed me, and I thought I killed her," he began, but stopped to catch his breath for a few seconds. One kiss was all he needed for a life's supply of oxygen... "And I don't know what happened to Vahn. Is he here?"  
  
"Last we know, you went with him," Che answered, shrugging.   
  
"Damn it. What about Noa and Gala?"  
  
"They're here." Lu turned and pointed over to another section of the cavern, where the duo was sitting. Noa's faint sobs could be heard from where the Delilas siblings sat, and they tore at the heart regardless. This situation seemed so hopeless that it was just plain pathetic.  
  
Lu stood and looked over to them. With Zora had gone her manipulative hatred, but not the wounds inflicted. Those would have to heal, physical or emotional. "Noa? Gala?" The two looked up slowly, without happiness or sadness or surprise ... or anything. "Do you know anything about what happened to Vahn?"  
  
"No," sighed Noa. "-- But we could try to talk to Meta, his Ra-Seru! Hold on!" All slowly fell to silence as she put a hand to her chest and bowed her head. Terra's gentle green light enveloped her body, and she made believe again that she was talking to herself inside of her head. -Terra, can you find Meta for us?-  
  
*I'll try to sense him.* She felt herself shuddering from a strange cold as she waited for a response... *I can feel him coming near. Vahn must be traveling back with his powers.* Sure enough, before Noa could broadcast the news to everyone, the red light flickered into view and a tired Vahn appeared kneeling. His companions ran to him, shouting his name. He did not seem to hear them.  
  
"Vahn..." But he did seem to hear the faint call of his name from halfway across the room which he heard all too well. Gi was here! Barely, but he was here! His entire world lit up as he got to his feet and turned to face the downed enemy-turned-lover-turned-savior. In just a moment their gazed locked like never before, and he felt his heart break in two and rearrange the bones in his feet.  
  
The four just watched silently as the two reunited, haunted by the hushed sobs which they heard. Vahn took Gi's hands into his and bowed his head down low, feeling so dizzy and so confused that all he wanted to do was fall asleep right here -- goodness only knew and gasped at the fact that "right here" was on the chest of the one he loved most.  
  
Gi's time was short, it seemed ... at least, until he passed on towards the end of time. Alone. "Vahn, I want you to stay here with everybody. I'm going to take myself before the pain even comes for me. Take care of my brother and sister ... will you? They can't be too bad. And try not to party too hard without me." His eye twitched into something of a wink, and even though he was crying he was smiling.  
  
He flipped his right hand over, it tense in Vahn's grasp, so that his palm faced the ceiling. A small dot of darkness rose over his body, trickling downwards in all sides to begin taking the shape of a sphere very similar to what Zora had put him in before. Vahn paid no attention to the surprised gasps behind him from Noa, and shook his head wildly.  
  
"I'm not staying here, after all I've gone through to get you and then get you back! You aren't leaving me, do you understand?! Not now, not ever...!" He realized what a babbling fool he sounded like, and how hard it was to yell and cry at the same time. The sphere began moving towards their hands, to the only thing that kept them together at the moment, applying pressure in hopes of separating them.  
  
The veins in his wrists were rising above his skin just trying to keep his loved one here, and he decided not to be such a stubborn fool or else he'd get killed first. He threw it open like a door with his shoulder, allowing him just enough time to slide beneath it and place one lingering (and hopefully not last) kiss upon the dying prince's lips. It hurt him so to know the pain just to react to it, even if it was a gesture of love, it was still movement.  
  
Their tears mingled on the ground just as it came down upon the back of his neck, forcing Vahn to retreat slowly without being decapitated. All of a sudden it clamped down tight and lifted him off of the ground, becoming more and more solid until nobody could see inside of it.  
  
"Brother!" Lu cried, dashing to Vahn's side. Both clawed at the sphere, but it did not move. It was like glass, robbing him silently and painlessly of life. They felt Gi's hand press outwards against it before it collapsed inwards and disappeared into thin air.  
  
Nobody dared to speak.  
  
They had watched him die ... willingly.  
  
After a few minutes of hearing nothing but the wind singing mournfully throughout the ravine, Vahn rose to his feet with his head still declined. "Lu, Che. Will you help us do what we've been trying to do all along? You won't die if the Mist is cleared, we'll make sure of it."  
  
The plan sounded good and promising, but confusing. "And ... then what?" Lu asked softly, placing a hand on his shoulder. She tried to ignore how tense his muscles were beneath it, and that he probably did not want any other touch right now.  
  
"And then ... well, we might just give living our lives a chance." He winced at his own words, at how horribly empty his own life would be. Maybe he would get lucky and be visited by Gi's spirit in his sleep one time, and go completely mad and claim his love to someone who was no longer in this realm. Run out of his house cackling with a wedding band, married to a ghost.  
  
Yes, he was losing it already. What left he had to lose, anyway. He had nothing more to offer the world, then.  
  
* * * *  
  
Time, fortunately or unfortunately, marched on. Lu and Che allowed the Ra-Seru heroes to finish their job, discover their pasts, go through more drama than could fit inside the Juggernaut, and find out things about themselves (especially Noa) that had been behind bolted doors. Though it hurt Gala to have finally destroyed the power-hungry Songi, he had moved on to better things ... what they were, he did not know.  
  
Speaking of the Juggernaut, it had nearly consumed Rim Elm and was draining the life out of the villagers inside of it. This is where it had began, and this is where it would end...  
  
... with Noa's annoyingly powerful brother, Cort, who had become part of the beast and was no longer human. Every second of this battle Vahn felt strong, but weak at the same time. His thoughts were out of order, floating around his head like they were in water, and he couldn't stop praying that he wouldn't die right now -- but then again, did he want to die so he could be with Gi and live in happy misery?  
  
Agh...  
  
Darkness...  
  
He remembered keeping on his feet and fighting, but then again he did not remember what exactly went on in the fight.   
  
All he remembered was that when the darkness cleared and silence took the throne right next to the light, he collapsed and did not feel anything at all for days. When he woke up, a group of eager faces were hanging over him. Noa, Gala, Lu, Che, his father, and his sister...  
  
He was back in Rim Elm. Damn it. They hadn't died. Damn it more.  
  
"Vahn, you blanked out on us when we won! Are you okay?" Noa chirped, placing the back of her hand to his forehead. He simply groaned and tried opening his eyes wider to clear his vision, which happened only when the tears began to fall.  
  
Finally he realized that he couldn't keep being so selfish and running on one track that wrapped all the way around the world -- he would keep on going and going and never hit the end. He sat upright and yawned. "I'm fine. Meta, Terra, Ozma ... what happened to them? Did they get sapped of their energy?"  
  
The group parted for him to show that a set of smaller beds had been brought in, all holding three different people. Val and Nene went outside to give them some room in the small house, and he got up to see who they were.  
  
He was both joyed but shocked by what he saw. "They ... took human forms?" he asked with an air of surprise.  
  
"They wanted to stay with us instant of disappearing forever," Gala said, "so they took the forms of three humans. They're now resting to get their life energy back, so they should be awake later tonight." Vahn paused to look them over. This wasn't like just staring at an entity on his arm which made him so much stronger, they had taken respective forms and looked something like young teenagers. He supposed that after all they had done, this was the best they could do. Meta looked like he was about thirteen with fiery red hair, pale skin, and very light red clothing.  
  
As the four were about to leave him alone for a while, Nene burst in with someone behind her. "Vahn, Dr. Usha came to see you." Now here's a face they hadn't seen in a while...  
  
*Ugh.* Vahn thought. *And I wanted to keep it that way.*  
  
Dr. Usha gave him a hearty slap on the back, which made him sputter and cough a bit. "How are you doing, my boy? Congratulations, and my deepest thanks! I believed you could do this, but to actually witness it is something else. I'm sure that all of Legaia would love to crowd in here and hug you right now."  
  
*Yeah ... and a few people up in Noaru, too...*  
  
The doctor took a step back and adjusted his glasses. "Are you thinking of leaving this town? I would think this quiet little village life isn't enough after all you've been through." He chuckled a bit at his own joke, and Vahn fought the urge to either shove the old cook out of his house or just roll his eyes.  
  
"Kind of," he muttered in reply. "Though it's safe to travel now, I don't know where we'd go."  
  
"What about that girl, Mei, who lives right next door?"  
  
"Oh ... um..."  
  
"She seems very nice, she fixed my pants when I tripped walking here and almost split them right down the middle."  
  
*Agh! Mental images!*  
  
"She is nice..." Man, did she ever bring back some whoppers of memories. Who knew what she'd say if he told her everything, including a love that would never return again who also happened to be male. He'd see stars for weeks. "But I ... don't think I'm quite ready for that yet." To change the topic and stop everyone from crowding his breathing space, he turned to his comrades with a smile. "I'm sorry, but ... could you all leave for a while? I think I'm going to rest a bit more."  
  
They all nodded, muttered goodbye, and left one by one. He closed the door behind a babbling, teetering Dr. Usha, and collapsed backwards onto his bed. He had a plan that would probably make him look like a coward, but a damn good thinker. It would take skill, cunning, energy ... and sleep.  
  
Later that night, the house was still empty of everyone but the resting Ra-Seru ... er, humans. Ra-Seru humans, right. Vahn slid out of bed and over to where Meta lay with a smile on his face, looking quite satisfied. Slowly and gently, he shook his shoulders. "Meta? Hey, you! Human boy, wake up!"  
  
To his surprise, Meta's eyes slid open -- and they, too, were red, just a much tamer color. He smiled and sat upright, signifying he was perfectly rested, and spoke in the same voice he had when he was fixed onto Vahn's arm. "Nice to see you again! We did not want to leave you three when all was said and done, and plus I wanted to see how you would fare. So, here we are, looking like children." His smile widened, and he shrugged.  
  
Vahn smiled in return, but it really didn't last. "I have a favor to ask of you, and I'm really hoping you can do it in your condition."  
  
"Yes, what is it?"  
  
His gaze fell like lead to the ground, and he hesitated a bit before letting the thoughts flow out in the form of badly placed words. "I want you to send me to the Valley of Noaru. I want Gi back, any way possible."  
  
Meta was silent. It didn't seem possible, at all. "But the Valley of Noaru is the place of the dead. One, you are not dead. Two, if you go, there is little no no chance that you will come back! You'd be tampering with nearly every rule of nature there is, you know..." But he stopped when Vahn put on that look that screamed he didn't want to hear about it.  
  
He slid off of the bed and stood in front of Vahn. "Are you completely sure about this?" Vahn nodded mutely. They joined hands, and like the connection of two wires, energy began flowing throughout their arms until they were full. "I don't know what might happen, so brace yourself for the best ... and the worst. With this energy you can contact me just in case we can get you back." And in a release of their arms and a great flash of light, Vahn had disappeared.  
  
The flash had poured through the windows, woken Terra and Ozma up, and sent everybody running out. Meta turned as the door flew open and they stood there asking who what where when why how where the hell is Vahn.  
  
He smiled a feeble, vague smile. "He's living in the world of the dead." 


	9. The Return?

Vahn's head was spinning with fear, excitement, and mixed anticipation as he felt himself descending in this tunnel of light. What if Meta wasn't able to pull him back from Noaru -- what if he was stuck there as a living person among countless dead people?  
  
There was a pretty good chance that nobody had ever done this before, mostly because no people in recorded history had utilized Ra-Seru to dive down into the afterlife to retrieve a lost soul.  
  
He didn't care if anyone in the future knew about him or not, because he was doubting he could return successfully. As he dreaded what was to come, his feet hit solid ground and the light around him receded...  
  
Before his eyes stretched an eternity of nature, which immediately brought questions to his mind. The sun shone upon them ... did it ever rain? Did they ever get hungry or hot or cold or tired or out of breath? All he knew is that if they didn't, and he got stuck here, he would be the only one who did and he would die anyway. Being here boggled his mind.  
  
When he thought about how he was going to find Gi here, he banged himself on the forehead in frustration and fell back. The grass caught his fall, and he stared up into the eternal sunlight. How, how, how...?  
  
He'd ask. That's right, he'd ask. Gi hadn't been dead for very long, so he couldn't have gone far, right?  
  
... Right?  
  
Thinking it was worth the stupid effort, he got to his feet and started walking. The minute he caught someone milling around, he ran to them waving an arm. "Excuse me! You there!" He ran to the woman whom he had startled, trying to catch his breath. He bet that dead people didn't have problems breathing.  
  
"Yes, what is it?" she said, helping him upright. Her hand landed on his chest, right where his heart was beating-- "What in Tieg's name is...? ... Your heart, it's beating! You're alive!" He calmed her yelping before she attracted unwanted attention from other ... dead ... people around.  
  
He straightening himself up and coughed into a fist. "It's a very long story. Just tell me this... have you seen a young man, around my height, with green hair? Did he run by here anytime soon?" She blinked a few times, then raised her eyes to the sky. Suddenly she looked as if she'd uttered a horrible curse.  
  
"He told me to keep an eye out for -you-."  
  
Taken a bit by surprise, he laughed and shook his head forward at her. "He told you to look out for me? Which way did he go?" When she didn't give him an answer, he seized her by her shoulders and shook her violently. "Tell me which way he went or I'll--" He looked down at his own hip, realizing that his weapon was not there on his belt. No wonder he felt something missing, in addition to Meta.  
  
She squeaked in fear anyway, pointing behind them. "He went that way!" she cried. "Just leave me alone already!" He let go of her, apologized profusely, and dashed off in that direction.  
  
Most of those who he passed watched him running madly, as he laughed and occasionally muttered Gi's name in excitement. He was headed towards a tree where the shadows provided by the thick branches and foilage above served as great hiding.  
  
And -- no doubt -- a crouched figure was dwelling in those shadows.  
  
"Is that you?! Gi! GI!"  
  
About six feet away, he dove like the world was by his fingertips -- but oh, it was, because Gi had become his world and everything he had lived and half-died for. He threw his arms around Gi's middle, sobbing hysterically into him, and knew from the immediate lack of reaction that he was mad. He thought he'd died just to come see him, but no!  
  
This was it -- this was their happy ending because he could sit here until the end of time --  
  
Gi pulled him up, his reclining weight crushing his torso a bit. "You fool, you died for me? To come see me?" When Vahn looked up, he realized the tears that refused to fall. It was just like living, except ... you were free of all of the daily life functions and problems. And for some reason he was kind of breathing ... oh, this was so scary...  
  
Vahn brushed the tears away, settling quite comfortably in his lap with his arms around Gi's neck. "I'm not dead," he said, nuzzling his face into the soft fabric of his shirt. He smelled like heaven, something to be expected of someone living in the Valley of Noaru, Legaia's equivalent of heaven.  
  
So where did all of the evil bastards who they had disposed of, like Cort, go? Did they just die and that was it, staring off into oblivion for the rest of their dead days? It was so confusing that it almost made Vahn glad to be alive. "Meta sent me here, but I'm still alive among all of these dead people. I came to see you and to take you back. I want to take you back with me to Legaia!" He said it a little too vehemently like it was against Gi's will, and threw himself excitedly upon him. With almost bruising force he kissed him, in sky-high hopes that everything would go well.  
  
Vahn straddling life and death here confused Gi as well, but he was thankful that he was here and solid somehow. The plaguing issues of whether this would work or not were pushed to the bottom of their priority lists, because they were too busy lost in each other and wishing time as they knew it would just freeze for them. But it couldn't.  
  
Gi was the one who broke away, running a thumb over Vahn's paled cheek to make absolutely sure that he wasn't dreaming. "Let's try," he said softly. "I want to go back to Legaia ... I want to fix all of the things that I did wrong." He stood up, guiding Vahn to his feet too. "Lead me back!"  
  
Vahn nodded, touching a hand to the opposite arm. A red glow hovered over his skin, and it sounded like the universe was a piece of paper ready to tear in half. "Meta, we want to come home," he said softly. Indeed the universe -did- tear, creating a wormhole of sorts out of thin air above their heads.  
  
It was like a tunnel leading up from hell to the earth, because it was dark inside and red at the edges. "Hurry up, Vahn!" Meta screamed through his head, and he winced a bit. He leapt up into the hole, hovering there in nothingness. With much difficulty he turned himself upside-down and reached his hand down to Gi. He leapt and took hold, and Vahn tried to get the hang of this floating business. As he went up, the hole began to close. It snapped shut on Gi's elbow like a rubber band, and for the first time since his arrival, he felt pain.  
  
"Shit, that hurt..."  
  
"That must mean you're close -- come on, help me here!"  
  
"I can't, I can't hang here forever! And my stupid arm is trapped!"  
  
"Pull! Just try!" Gi thrust his head up into the hole, only to be pelted on the cheek by one of Vahn's falling tears. "You're stronger than I am, Gi! Please, don't surrender!" Another tear. "I want you to come back with me or else I'm committing suicide to join you!"   
  
Not all that taken with the thought of suicide to begin with, Gi wormed his body up until his feet were solid on the shimmering edges of the hole. "I'm opening up the other end!" Meta yelled, but they both heard it. A blinding light appeared at the end, through which his voice called down.  
  
Vahn seemed to be holding onto oblivion with the other hand, like that was his only lifeline. "Pull yourself, I'm struggling just to hold onto you!" he cried.  
  
Gi was getting frustrated at life, and even death, trying to wrench them apart. He used his legs to propel him up to Vahn's height, threw his arms around him tight, and put his feet against the opposite "wall". They felt as if they were trying to climb back up a chimney. "Use your arms," he said, shifting his feet up slowly.  
  
With them working together like that, they began inching closer to the light until a single ray of it shone down on Vahn. They were pulled into it, and with the force of a small volcano erupting, they were shot out and thrown together onto the wall of Vahn's house, knocking the cabinet doors open.  
  
Noa and the three Ra-Seru humans (everyone still at a loss for something better to call them) were there, and rushed over to them. "Are you okay, Vahn?" Noa cried, the floodgates opening so that rivers rushed from her eyes. "I thought you died! I thought you wouldn't come back safely!"  
  
*Glad to know she's still optimistic.*  
  
"But -- what happened to Gi?" Meta asked.  
  
Vahn looked at Gi, and Gi looked at Vahn. "He's right here," Vahn said, as if he'd been asked what one plus one is. How could -anybody- miss them curled up so tightly to one another that they seemed to be siamese twins?  
  
The four of them shook their heads, mumbling individually. "I don't see him," Noa whined, flailing her arms. "Are you sure you brought him up? I think that trip was a little too much for you -- you must be sick!"  
  
"I'M NOT SICK!" he roared, and she backed away with her eyes as wide as tea saucers. "He's right here next to me! What do you think my arms are around, the air?! Gi, get up for a minute!" They both stood, and unwound their arms from around each other. "Punch the wall or something!"  
  
"Uh--"  
  
"Just do something."  
  
He punched the wall lightly, the sound making Noa scream and jump back onto the bed. "A GHOST!" she shrieked, throwing the blanket over her head.  
  
"Wait just a second," Terra said, putting her hands to her head and pressing very hard on her temples. She closed her eyes and focused hard, then opened her eyes after a few seconds. Surprise -- Gi was there. "Now I see him," she said in complete confusion.  
  
Ozma did the same, and Gi appeared to him too. "Vahn, Gi -is- a ghost. Because you brought him up, you're the only one that can actually see him. The three of us can see him only because we still have some powers left. But Noa, Gala, Lu, Che ... no other humans can see him."  
  
He grinned a bit, almost laughing at the idea. "So what does it look like when I do this?" He turned on his heel and pinned Gi against the wall, kissing him furiously. When Gi gasped a bit, reminding himself that he needed to breathe again, he ran his hand through the back of Vahn's hair.  
  
"It looks like you're making love to the wall and your hair is rippling," Noa giggled, jumping off the bed with the blanket around her like a cape.  
  
"We know what you're doing," Meta said, rolling his eyes. Terra and Ozma laughed.  
  
Vahn leaned against the wall, holding Gi's hand tightly. "But in all seriousness, Vahn," Terra said, stepping forward, "it's going to be a bit hard for you to explain to everyone what's going on. Maybe ... too hard. You can go on living like this?"  
  
She'd hit the note he never wanted to hear. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with Gi, but ... like this? Only four people in the world could see him because he was the living dead?  
  
Just how many houses did life have to drop on him?  
  
His eyes watering, he collapsed forward onto his hands and knees and sobbed at the floorboards like they were listening. Meta and Ozma backed out slowly, Terra putting an arm over Noa's shoulders and guiding her outside. "I'll go tell Lu and Che of this," he heard Meta say before the door closed and all was silent.  
  
Gi got down on his knees next to Vahn, rubbing his back gently. "Even with the Mist gone, Legaia is a depressing and mysterious place. I'm so sorry it turned out like this, Vahn..." That's when Vahn got up onto his knees and hugged him for dear life and dear death. "I can live like this, no problem," he said quietly to assure himself.  
  
"Good, because I can die like this, too. Don't surrender."  
  
He looked up with a tearful smile. "I won't surrender." 


	10. All I Need

All right, people! ::kicks a stray tumbleweed: This is it -- the last chapter! An even ten chapters, as I planned. It sort of has a happy ending, if you ignore the fact that Gi is pretty much invisible. I hope you enjoyed this fic, and I really had a lot of fun writing it. Vahn/Gi forever! ;_;  
  
In some instances, Vahn was right that he could live with Gi being completely invisible to almost everyone. In other instances, he was completely wrong. Every night as the sea breeze blew the curtains in, flapping noisily in the silence that came with everyone leaving the two alone, he would curl up tighter and tighter to Gi to be his brace against the wind. He would lay there for around two hours because his mind was filled with thoughts and questions.  
  
How -had- it been possible that he could pull someone from Noaru? If other people were able to, they would be tripping over invisible people left and right. He had just done what his gut instinct told him to do. Every time he thought about Noaru, he thought about how he was alive there and how many laws of nature he was breaking, and then he quickly changed the subject.  
  
"Go to sleep," Gi would mutter, massaging his tense shoulders. Vahn's eyes would spring open almost as if he were trained to do so at a voice command, and realize how tightly he was holding on and how violently he was shuddering from internal pain. And then he would say something like, "You go to sleep first," and pull him even closer. When he could feel Gi's heart beating next to his, knowing that he was there and breathing calmly, that's when his entire muscle system would relax and he would finally sleep.  
  
One morning out of the rest, Vahn was shaken awake by a pair of unfriendly and cold hands. It was Gi's startled cry of "Hey!" in his ear when he was squashed as well that he realized Mei was standing over him. She probably didn't hear Gi, or was just pretending not to care.  
  
She pulled him up to a sitting position, not feeling that she was tearing the two apart. "You've been in here for days by yourself, Vahn!" she yelled, her cheeks flushed with anger. "Nobody's told me what's going on yet, so I figured I would get to hear this story straight from you." He paused for a second, stammering and blinking. She sure wasn't as nice as he remembered she was.  
  
He looked at Gi, pretending to look past him to the wooden cabinet, and then stood up. His rise pushed her back a little, by all means intentional. "You want to know what happened? Well, Lu and Che are here because they lost their brother Gi. So I went back into Noaru for him, and I pulled him out with Meta's help. You just can't see him or hear him because he's pretty much a ghost. He was right next to me when you woke me up, thank you very much." At that very second, her rage died and she looked completely crestfallen. "If you didn't get that, let me put it in simple terms. Gi is here with me because I wanted him back. I want to spend the rest of my life with him, even if he's invisible to every one. Yes, Mei, I -love- him."  
  
It took a few seconds before she even moved, but it wasn't one that he expected nor welcomed. She rose a hand up and slapped him viciously across the cheek, the sharp sound bouncing off of the walls for a moment. His head snapped to the side and his vision blurred, but when he looked straight again, she was crying.  
  
Her shoulders were shaking, and it never even occured to him once that she was just trying to sneak some pity out of him. *Too late for that now.* "You left me here in this boring little village all by myself for all of that time just because you were on some personal sidequest? Did you ever once think of me and how I felt for you? I don't understand you! I thought you cared, Vahn, but no -- you're as selfish as the next one! Why did I even waste my time on you --"  
  
She was stopped abruptly when she was suddenly shoved back and went crashing into the opposite wall. She couldn't see it, but Gi was standing next to Vahn with his arms extended and palms flat. When she recovered from the shock, restraining an incredible urge to either scream or cry, she stood upright and left the house immediately, slamming the door behind her.  
  
Vahn let out a sigh of relief, then walked to his chest of drawers and pulled a shirt from the bottom drawer. "You didn't have to push her, you know," he said, pulling it over his head and sticking his arms through the sleeves. "But I'm glad you did." He took Gi by the hand and lead him out of the small hellhole he called his home.  
  
Lu and Noa happened to be coming from one of the newer houses that were built now that Rim Elm's protective stone wall was down, and ran towards them (well, Vahn, as far as they saw). "Mei just ran past us in hysterics," Lu sneered. "What did you do to her -- break her the news?" Vahn nodded, and she couldn't help but laugh.  
  
"Hey, wait a minute ... how come you sound like you've known her your entire life? Did you talk to my dad?!" Noa, who had a thing for stating the obvious, giggled and nodded so fast that Vahn thought her neck was going to snap. "He said you used to be in loooove with Mei!" she giggled, twirling in circles.  
  
They just watched her spin around, until Lu reached into the human tornado and seized her wrist. "We're going to the festival by Drake Castle, if you can guess whose idea it was." She rolled her eyes, and Noa straightened herself out at the very mention of the festival. "Festival! Let's go, Lu, let's go!" And so, she sped off with Lu calling, "Bye Vahn, bye Gi!" over her shoulder as she was pulled along.  
  
As he watched them run off into the distance, Vahn got an idea. It wasn't a very good one, but it was something to do. "I bet you haven't seen all of Legaia yet. Come, I want to show you it. I want to show you everything!"  
  
Gi was dragged as well, but managed to pull him back. "You know that people will still look at you like you're talking to yourself and pulling at the air?" he asked, frowning. Vahn kept on going, much to his surprise. "I don't care!" And then he echoed, laughing. "I don't care... The world needed me, now they don't, but I don't need the world. All I need is you, because you're the only thing keeping me hanging on here. Even if the rest of the world can't see you! The Ra-Seru hero Vahn is completely drunk with love and he likes it!"  
  
It took a minute before Gi smiled broadly and they began running off hand-in-hand. "I don't need the world, either, because they can't even see me! Hah! I'll watch you grow old until the end of time! And then we'll exist outside of time and life itself and we can finally be together! Right?" That's when he realized that they were running as fast as they could across the field, and the castle was getting closer and closer.  
  
All of Legaia must have thought that he was strange from the start, to have awakened a Ra-Seru and cleared the lands of what they had been hiding from the whole entire time. And now that he was madly -- at this rate, he was stark-raving mad -- in love with one who had once stood in favor of the Mist and the chaos it brought, he wasn't any more sane.  
  
Did he care?  
  
"Right!" Vahn exclaimed. Laughing and sprinting as fast as they possibly could, which was pretty fast due to their heightened abilities, they stood at the beginning of the front courtyard where everyone was gathered.  
  
He panted and nodded, watching everyone dancing in pairs. Doing everything with a ghost would be fun to watch, if not horrifying. "It all begins here," he said breathlessly.  
  
Gi took him smack in the middle of the jovial crowd, holding his hand high in the air so all could see it. "And it never ends," he added, fixing their arms to all the right places.  
  
Maybe if all of Legaia squinted really hard and focused, they would be able to see the imaginary friend that Vahn was dancing with. Or maybe they just chose to ignore the fact that they were all stark-raving mad in one respect. Either way, nobody present that day made a single noise about it -- except for Lu and Noa.  
  
Whatever way it went, it didn't matter if the world was crazy or not. Something new happened every day, and he wouldn't be very surprised if someone somewhere was still talking to dead people.  
  
It made Vahn happy to think that, as he danced with virtually nobody and rejoiced for once in a very long time, he wasn't crazy after all. Just in love.  
  
And he didn't want to admit it, but he felt normal for once. 


End file.
